


In the Name of Love

by Broken_Clover



Category: Guilty Gear
Genre: Abandonment Issues, Canon-Typical Violence, F/F, Human/Parasite Relationships, M/M, Original Character(s), Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-30
Updated: 2019-05-14
Packaged: 2019-05-16 06:05:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 28,180
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14805761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Broken_Clover/pseuds/Broken_Clover
Summary: In a desperate bid to win Zato's affection, Venom goes behind the Guild's back to steal a Forbidden Beast.





	1. Claimed

**Author's Note:**

> AU fic, taking place sometime after Zato and Millia become hosts, but before Eddie takes over.  
> Personally, after hearing about the whole Assassins plot and Venom being denied as a host, I'm amazed that it was something he took lying down. I mean, yes, he is very loyal, but still. I felt like he would have tried to steal a Beast at least once.

The crate had been heavy, too heavy to carry on foot. That was the biggest spanner in the works. His carefully-made plans were already falling apart.

 

Huffing irritably, Venom dropped the wooden lever he’d been trying to use to lift up the box for far too many minutes now. A long series of curses sat on his tongue, ready to damn the Guild, Slayer, fate, luck, and the creature itself inside the crate. At the same time though, he was committing treason, and was as equally disappointed in himself. He knew that it would ultimately be pointless either way, but he was just so angry with the world that it was difficult to keep it down and ignore it as he always had.

 

_ ‘Millia...what does she have that I don’t?!’ _ He thought, scowling.  _ ‘All those years training, working...what makes me unsuitable as a host?’ _

 

Under most circumstances, he would have opted to just grin and bear it. It was what he’d done for years, trying to ignore how much it hurt that he did so much for Zato without so much as an  _ ‘I’m proud of you, Venom’  _ or even just a  _ ‘thank you, Venom.’ _ How no matter what he did, his master had always loved Millia more.

 

_ ‘No...I won’t let that happen anymore. I won’t let it.’ _

 

Assassin’s headquarters or not, the little concrete room was sheltered and hidden. As long as he was quiet, surely nobody would find him anytime soon. He’d manage to sneak in undetected almost effortlessly, after all, even after they'd banned him from being near the creature they'd deemed him unsuitable to host. He was already face-to-face with a Forbidden Beast- okay, a captive one in a box, but still. The only thing keeping him from fulfilling his purpose was to open it. 

 

No matter what the Guild said, it didn’t matter. He was going to host the creature whether they deemed him ‘suitable’ or not. He would be a better host than Millia ever could be. He was going to make Zato proud. Even just a smile. That was all he wanted. It was all he’d ever wanted.

 

_ ‘Don’t keep destiny waiting, Venom.’ _

 

He picked up the lever again, but instead of sliding it under the box as he had last time, he jammed the tip underneath the top. With as much strength as he could muster, he forced it down, and the nails sealing the crate split open with an ancient creak. The top went flying as soon as the final nail came loose, wooden planks clattering to the ground.

 

A cloud of dark blue bubbled out of the crate almost as soon as it was opened, pouring out like a waterfall that pooled into a restless puddle onto the floor. Tendrils spidered across the concrete, quickly congealing into a thick, twisting stream of a body that suddenly became very interested in circling the man who had freed it. Venom watched it swirl around his feet, trying to get a better look as it moved. He would admit that he felt a bit uneasy, but the lid had been broken, and there was no going back now.

 

Slowly, what must have been the head of it wound around and raised itself to his eye level. Looking at the Beast, it was like a swatch of space had been torn out and placed in front of him. A backdrop of inky blue darkness, peppered with starlike dots, bobbed slightly, with the pattern not moving with the body, but staying in place like a single image.

 

A pair of stars sat in supernova, little pinpricks bursting into waves of light. Instinct told him that it was the equivalent of the creature’s eyes, and he found himself staring into them.

 

“You.” Despite his nervousness, he raised a hand to point at the Beast. “I don’t care what the Guild said. You’re going to fuse with me.”

 

It sat in place for a moment, staring with its strange star eyes. He didn’t know how to read the emotions of such an odd creature, so all he could think to do was keep stoic and keep staring it down to exert dominance.

 

“Come. I’m your host now. Fuse with me.” Venom sharpened his glare. “Now.”

 

The Beast didn’t move, merely bobbing its head in place soundlessly.

 

_ “Now!” _

 

Still silence. Venom felt an odd combination of anger and sadness. Was it truly rejecting him? He’d thought the Guild had only decided that, not the Beast itself. They hadn’t been lying when they said that he wasn’t suitable?

 

Still, he desperately tried to keep his glare.  _ “Stop playing with me! I demand that you-” _

 

The creature let out a low, sonorous call that Venom could feel down to his core. Before he could react, the nebulous blue wyrm sized up in the air, twinkling brightly, and lunged at him.

 

A strange feeling settled into him as the creature made impact, somehow both hot and cold at the same time. He heard a sharp crack, and an agonizing pain bloomed along his back, accompanied by the feeling of something wet. The waves of pain only grew stronger and sharper with every passing moment, and they quickly dragged him under, vision going dark before his body even hit the floor.

 

++++++

 

Venom could process the soreness before anything else. A deep ache had settled itself right in the center of his back, not overwhelming anymore but definitely noticeable. Next, he recognized a weak bit of soreness settled over his chest. It seemed that he’d fallen over, so that was probably due to the impact.

 

The Beast. 

 

His eyes snapped open immediately, and he felt a strange sort of relief when he realized that yes, he could still see. That was good. It would have been difficult to adapt to something like that. He wouldn’t be able to see Zato.

 

Gradually, he tried to move different parts of himself to make sure he was still all there. He was in an odd position, splayed out facedown on the concrete, and couldn’t see much aside from the floor and the bit of his bangs that scraped against it.

 

Neck? Not broken, although moving didn’t help the pain in his back.

 

Arms? Sore, but functional.

 

Hands pressed along his sides, looking for changes. No organs seemed to be missing. Although, the further down he moved, the less he could feel. By the time his fingertips brushed against his hips, the skin underneath was numb.

 

“W-what?”

 

Venom managed to roll onto his side, though the pain made him gasp. His legs were still there, but laid limp against the floor, as though boneless. He managed to reach down to touch them, but much like his hips, he couldn’t feel the fingers against them. Everything from the waist down was completely numb.

 

In a bit of panic, he reached around for the ache in his back. That he could feel, and the pain was more than happy to make itself present. Amongst a wet stain, he found a round, jagged wound that stung as soon as he touched it. When he pulled his fingers back to where he could see, he found the ends coated in a mix of ruby blood and starry blue viscera. The sight and scent of his own blood made his stomach twist, and he fought down the nausea. Still, he was intrigued by the strange substance that was mixed in with it.

 

It wasn’t just a cut, he realized. It was an entrance wound.

 

The Beast had snapped his spine.

 

As soon as the thought came to him, a slimy sensation dribbled out from the wound to pool out on the floor. Though it did worsen the pain, he was too distracted by the sudden change to let it bother him. The sliminess lifted itself up and squirmed up his side, all the while staying connected to him at the tail. Soon enough, he spotted a familiar dark blue slip over his waist, head turned to look him in the eyes.

 

_ “Greetings.” _ It had no mouth, but he heard it nonetheless. The soft, feminine tone seemed to place itself right inside his head.

 

“I-I- you-”

 

It made a low sound akin to a chuckle.  _ “It’s alright. I know this is disorienting. It will ease with time.” _

 

The worm-like body bubbled and twisted. It morphed into a hand-like shape, and the fingers stroked the side of his face gently.

 

“Oh God…” Venom whispered, reaching up to touch the blue hand against his cheek. “It worked.”

 

_ “Ah? Glad to satisfy. I’ve been ever-so-lonely without a host.”  _ The voice sounded bemused.  _ “I must thank you for that. I was getting so very tired of being inside that musty box.” _

 

It all felt so surreal. Venom wondered if it had felt like this when his master had first been given Eddie. He’d felt too unsure to ask, afraid he was overstepping some sort of line by doing so. Looking back on it, he had always wondered all of these things about the Forbidden Beasts, things that he was finally going to experience on his own.

 

“Pardon, but I don’t think I managed to catch your name. Er, if you have one?”

 

_ “Oh, no problem at all, darling.”  _ The hand reached up to pat his head.  _ “You may call me Beatrice. And who may you be?” _

 

Beatrice, huh? “Venom.”

 

_ “Lovely name! Far more interesting than ‘Beatrice,’ I think. Either way, I’m looking forward to getting to know you, Venom!”  _

 

“...I’ll admit, you’re rather polite for someone who broke my spine.”

 

_ “Yes...so very sorry about that.” _ The voice cooed. The hand moved over to the hole where it had came from and began stroking it. Somehow, the pain seemed to lessen.  _ “It’s not something I chose. I and the other Beasts were made that way. I wouldn’t hurt you if I could.” _

 

“Oh.” Had Eddie not wanted to hurt Zato, too? “Well, I suppose I knew there would be consequences to this. I’m just not sure how I’m going to continue my work in such a state…”

 

_ “...Hmm…” _

 

“What?”

 

The Beast didn’t reply. Venom felt the sliminess pull back into him briefly, before even more of it squeezed out. It wrapped itself around his lower half, slowly raising him off the ground into something almost resembling a standing position. 

 

The blue material around him peeled away, splitting off into eight segments. Each thinned and darkened, and a few moments later, Venom was standing on a set of spider-like appendages, with his true legs dangling limply in the center.

 

_ “How is that, darling? Better?” _ Beatrice’s voice came back. A thin trail of the blue laid itself along his spine to support him, with the end sitting perched on his shoulder like a loyal pet.

 

“This is...impressive. But can I still move?”

 

_ “Of course! Just will it so. You have the ability to control everything I make and do.” _

 

As soon as he focused on the idea of moving, Venom felt the thin legs lift up and skitter. The movement was very bizarre, and he struggled to keep them working in unison, but he managed a handful of tentative steps and stopped.

 

“Amazing!” He marveled at the limbs. Already, they felt like an extension of him. He swore he could feel them, even. 

 

_ “I aim to please, dear Venom. It may feel strange now, but I believe you will grow skilled with practice. You seem the type who is quick to adapt.” _

 

“As much as I’d like to keep this conversation going, we need to leave before the Guild finds me. I did steal you, after all.” Of course, he would still be leaving behind the broken crate and the cart he'd intended to use to put the crate on. One way or another, the Guild would find out about what he'd done. For now, though, he just needed to get away.

 

_ “Very true. Alright.” _ Her tone became serious.  _ “I don’t think you’re practiced enough to run right now. Would it be alright if I took over the legs and carried us to safety? You’ll just have to tell me where to go.” _

 

“I...suppose that seems like the best choice.” While he was hesitant to relinquish control, she did have a point. If he tried to run, there was a good chance he was just going to wind up falling on his face. 

 

He glanced around the room, trying to envision the network of hallways that laid beyond the single door. Before he could bark an order, though, he felt the legs moving, carrying him away from the exit.

 

“Hey, what are you doing?!” He demanded sharply.

 

_ “Sorry, dear. I had an idea. Do you see that window?” _

 

“Window?” Glancing up, he noticed a small pane of glass high on the wall. “Er, yes, but it looks rather small, not to mention high. How do you intend to-”

 

He wasn’t given a chance to finish. With the line supporting his spine, the spindly legs approached the wall and began planting themselves against it. Before he knew it, Venom was sideways, carefully being carried up horizontally towards the window

 

_ “Try and hold still, please. This will be a bit of a tight fit.” _

 

The dark, silent night was lit up by the sound of shattering. A sharp leg slammed through the glass window over and over again with such a severity that it made Venom flinch, sending shards raining to the ground twenty feet below.

 

When the glass was mostly gone, the legs poised themselves in an almost dance-like gesture, pulling the body through delicately with the legs spread on all sides.

 

“I...I can’t believe it.” Venom took in a deep breath of the cool night air as he clung to the outside wall of the building. “You’re really something, Beatrice.”

 

_ “Ahh, so glad to hear, darling! So glad to hear. I do live to please my master!” _

 

The two skittered down the side of the blank concrete wall. The building was hidden, nestled deeply into the woods, so it was a simple matter of skittering off into the undergrowth to hide from view. 

 

Venom couldn’t help but remark how odd the sensation was. It was still strange being unable to walk and feel anything from the waist down, yet still feel the legs moving around him. The sensation of the legs almost purring over the ground, with no bumps or roughness, was practically akin to hovering.

 

He couldn’t exactly tell where Beatrice was trying to take him. Though he often had trust issues, Venom wasn’t feeling particularly paranoid. He could always try and stop Beatrice of she tried to pull something. Then again, she seemed so amicable and friendly that he had a hard time believing that she could even think of that. He was hosting her, what benefit would there be to letting one’s host be harmed?

 

_ “Venom, dear? This looks like a good place to rest, don’t you think?” _

 

The creature had managed to bring them to a small, quiet clearing. A nearby stream murmured quietly in the darkness alongside the sound of rustling grass. Though Venom could see little in the dusk, it seemed peaceful and safe enough.

 

“Yes, this seems like a good spot.”

 

_ “Wonderful!” _

 

The legs skittered restlessly like a settling cat, eventually folding underneath him. Rather than just lie on the grass, though, a mat of dark blue spread out on the ground as the legs melted. Venom used his arms to adjust himself onto it, and found it to be pleasantly soft, almost like a mattress.

 

Beatrice seemed to take notice of how he sank into it.  _ “You seem comfy. I’m glad! I have many, many uses that you’re more than welcome to take advantage of.”  _

 

“Thank you, Beatrice. That’s very kind of you.” Despite relaxing, Venom didn’t close his eyes. “So, which of us is going to take the first shift?

 

_ “...pardon?” _

 

“Well, we can’t both sleep. There’s always worry for an ambush that way.” He explained. “So we sleep in shifts.”

 

_ “Ohhh! I see now.” _ She hummed.  _ “Well, Beasts like me don’t really need to sleep. Don’t worry about anything! I can keep the watch tonight while you sleep.” _

 

“Er...are you sure?” Venom couldn’t think of the last time he’d been able to sleep for a full night. Even when not on guard duty, he was so tense that most noises could wake him up. He really wasn’t sure of how he was going to try and sleep all night in the wild.

 

_ “Of course! I’m sworn to serve my host and provide for his needs!” _ Beatrice sounded quite sure of herself.  _ “You needn’t worry about a thing. I get the feeling you’ve got big plans for tomorrow?” _

 

“...Alright. I’m going to sleep. Thank you.” He curled into the soft, jelly-like substance. 

 

_ “Not a problem at all, dearie! I hope you sleep well.” _

 

Venom felt something gentle lay itself across his arm and shoulder. Glancing up, he spotted the thin, wyrm-like body, still with its odd, unmoving pattern, curl up on top of him, stars twinkling faintly as they scanned the clearing.

 

Tomorrow...yes. Tomorrow he would show Zato what he’d done. How clever he was. How well he could handle Beatrice. His master was going to be so proud of him, so impressed. He could hardly wait...

 

Smiling fondly, Venom closed his eyes, and quickly fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Keeping with the rock/metal theme, Beatrice is the name of a Hungarian rock band. In contrast to Eddie, I wanted a softer and more polite character that Venom could have a serious conversation with. I hope to have their relationship be central to the plot, so there will be a lot of conversations between them.
> 
> As it seems in canon, despite blinding Zato, Eddie acts as not only his shadow but his surrogate eyes as well. Millia is implied to have lost her reproductive organs to gain prehensile control over her hair. To follow that concept, Beatrice took away Venom's ability to walk normally, but he can do so through alternate means among other uses, which I intend to show more of in later chapters!
> 
> In terms of design, I imagined Beatrice following the 'unmoving plaid' design trope, something akin to Cosmic Mario in SMG.


	2. Befriended

Despite his expectations, when Venom woke up the next morning, the sun was already high in the sky. The warmth on his back and the breeze on his skin made him realize that he was still outside, but it took a moment to remember how he had wound up there to begin with.

Rubbing the lingering sleepiness out of his eyes, he propped himself up on his elbows and glanced around. “Beatrice?”

_“Ahh, good morning, dearie! So good to see you up!”_

Venom suddenly threw himself back at the sight of something in front of him. It wound up being the corpse of a deer, half-skinned and butchered.

“Huh?!”

_“I hope you don’t mind. I fetched breakfast!”_

“Oh. Uh, thank you, Beatrice. That’s very kind of you.”

_“No trouble at all, Venom. Have to make sure my host is eating!”_

After managing to find his balance and putting himself into a sitting position, he started picking at the body. He was no stranger to foraging for food, although he regretted wearing his usual white ensemble for when it was inevitably going to dirty up. He couldn’t go back to his room at the Guild anymore. At this point- or, as he liked to think, for now- he was a fugitive.

That wasn’t going to last long, though. Not if he had anything to say about it. Lord Zato was going to be so pleased with him.

As he pulled out the meat, Venom came to the realization that he had nothing to cook it with. Before he could even call to Beatrice, though, the tip of a tendril settled onto his shoulder, cool against his skin.

_“Need something?”_

“Yes, I...how did you know?”

_“Though our bond is still new and rather weak, I still have the capability to feel what you feel to an extent. I don’t know what exactly it is that you need, though. May I ask?”_

“The deer. I need to get wood so I can cook it.”

_“Ohhh!”_

The tendril pulled off of his shoulder and twisted around in front of him. The dark blue surface bubbled and morphed, taking on the appearance of a dragon’s head. Suddenly, a gout of inky-black flames shot out of the creature’s mouth. Though the appearance made it look like it was going to coat the meat in stickiness, when the flames subsided, the cooked meat lay in a charred spot on the grass.

_“Forget wood, I'm a built-in lighter, hehe! How is that?”_

“You can make fire? I didn’t expect…”

_“Like I said! I have many capabilities.”_

“Can all the Forbidden Beasts do that?” He hadn’t seen Zato do anything like that with Eddie.

_“Well, ah, no. Much like the Outrage, each Beast has different properties. Angra, the Living Thread, Eddie, the Baleful Shadow, and I, Beatrice, the Nebulous Flame.”_

“Flame?”

Beatrice chuckled. _“Yes. Despite my appearance, my affinity lies in fire...is that troublesome?”_

Venom picked up a piece of the roasted venison and took a bite. “No. If anything, it’s rather helpful.”

The Beast went quiet as her host ate, tendril-head curling up on his shoulder. Venom was thankful for the quiet. Though Beatrice was a pleasant woman (creature?) he was used to working on his own.

The quiet also made it easier to think. He had plans for this, of course, he wasn’t going to just steal a Beast and wander aimlessly, but he didn’t know where exactly to start. From his jacket pocket, he retrieved a list of names and information- Zato’s list of assassination targets.

 _“Oh, my. That’s quite a long list! What do you-”_ Beatrice cut herself off, wincing. _“Apologies, I didn’t mean to intrude.”_

“It’s fine. You should be seeing this, anyway.”

_“Oh? Why?”_

“These are the people that we’re going to kill.”

Apparently there was merit to Beatrice’s claim that they were connected. He felt an odd twinge of hesitance, but he knew it wasn’t his. “Does that bother you?”

_“A...a tad, dearest, but don’t worry. I’m no stranger to having blood on my hands. It’s just going to be a little odd that I’m hunting people now, rather than Gears. I will bear it.”_

“Good.” He couldn’t have her working against him. It needed to be a partnership. “We’re going to find these people, kill them, and make it known that it was our doing.”

He could feel her confusion. _“Isn’t the point of assassination to be subtle? Or are my definitions outdated? I’m not sure how long I was in there…”_

Venom realized just how selfish the whole thing was when he thought about it. “I...I’m doing this to impress my Lord Zato. I want him to be proud of me. I want to earn his respect.”

Beatrice looked at him silently for a few moments, contemplative. What was she going to do? Could he force her to comply even if she disagreed? From what he had seen, Eddie wasn’t nearly this independent, was he doing something wrong?

Instinctively, Venom flinched as she let out a loud sound and lunged at him.

_“Ahh, darling! Such a noble pursuit! I’d be overjoyed to help you win your master’s heart!”_ Beatrice cried, wrapping strong tendrils around Venom in a hug. 

“What?” He felt his cheeks warming, and tried to pull the tendrils off. “N-no, it isn’t like that-”

 _“We are connected, remember?”_ Her voice softened. _“When you say his name, I can sense the admiration you have for him. He means a lot to you, doesn’t he?”_

“...Yes.” No point in lying to her, embarrassing as it was. “He rescued me at a young age, and I have been indebted to him ever since.”

_“But it’s more that just dedication, isn’t it? You admire him. You adore him. You want your master’s heart to be yours.”_

Venom had rarely been so embarrassed in his life. Since being taken into the Guild, he preferred keeping his emotions under wraps to avoid this sort of thing. And now he had something literally tethered to him that could sense his feelings.

Beatrice pressed a hand into his back, rubbing it gently. _“It’s alright. Do not be ashamed. I know humans are prone to such behaviors, such emotions. There is nothing shameful about love…”_ She noticed how Venom tensed underneath. _“Why are you so averse to my touch? You disliked it when I hugged you, too.”_

“I...I’m unused to it. It feels strange.”

_“Ah. Well, just think of it like how your mother used to hold you.”_

“I’m an orphan. I never knew either of my parents.”

He could feel Beatrice go stiff in shock. The hand pulled away from him, retreating into the hole in his back. A moment later, a pair of arms pulled out. The reached around his broad shoulders, wrapping him in a hug from behind.

_“Unloved all your life...you’ve been deprived for so long, dear. Don’t worry. I will give you everything that you need. We will turn your master’s head. I will help you win his heart.”_

He didn’t reply, merely putting his own hand over the ones wrapped around him. The two sat like that for a moment, just alone in silence, until Beatrice reached up to ruffle his hair.

_“Well, can’t go hunting without eating, first! Have a bit more meat, and then we can head out.”_

“Yes. Very true.” Glad to finally be on a different subject, Venom grabbed for more deer.

 _“So, where are we headed first?”_ Beatrice poked her head back over his shoulder.

With his free hand, Venom pulled a map from his back pocket and laid it out on the grass, next to the list of targets.

“Here. Marseille. We’re about 20 miles out right now, according to my estimates. Target is a drug kingpin called Jefferson. Place and mechanism are irrelevant, we just need him dead.”

_“Preferably with someone finding his body, yes? That way word will get out, and lord Zato will know that it was our doing.”_

“Yes, ideally.”

_“Wonderful! Excellent plan, I like it very much!”_

After finishing off a bit more venison, Venom wrapped up and stashed some for later. Beatrice reformed the spindly spider legs, which clicked against the ground restlessly as Venom checked the map over.

“We’re following this road to Marseille. Think you can handle that?”

_“Of course, dearie! 20 miles will be a pleasant walk for me. As long as you stay nourished, I can siphon energy from you. Ah...just let me know if you start feeling funny, okay? I don’t want to push you too hard.”_

“Understood.”

Without another word, the two began their trek to find the main road.

++++++

Though Venom didn’t have much to say he’d been willing to let Beatrice talk when she wanted to. He wasn’t sure if it was a bad idea or not, seeing as how much of a chatterbox she had turned out to be. She could sense when he was beginning to get annoyed and would peter out for a while, but it was very easy to tell that she was the talkative type.

_“You know, you really are the nicest assassin I’ve ever met. I’m glad you let me out!”_

At least he had been able to gather information through it. When trying to ask Venom about himself didn’t get far, she was more than happy to talk about herself.

_“Not much to do in that icky box. Just sitting and waiting. I really can’t thank you enough, I swear I was going mad!”_

“You said your kind didn’t need to sleep,” Venom said, with a twinge of curiosity, “were you awake the entire time in there?”

 _“Oh, every second.”_ Beatrice sighed. _“I don’t understand why they would give something sentience and then box it up.”_

“On that note, why were you sealed up like that? It wasn’t my place in the Guild to question, but do you know?”

He could feel the creature’s irritation. _“We were taken out as needed. When that was done, they’d tear us out of the host and get stuffed back into boxes. They never even let me out, though. Always said I was ‘incompatible’ with the hosts they were going to give me. I’ve spent almost my entire life sealed up.”_

Venom felt an unexpected pang of sympathy. “You’ve never had a host before?”

 _“Not a single one.”_ The little blue head nuzzled against his cheek. _“That’s why I’m so glad my first was such a friendly fellow! I feel so lucky to have you.”_

In truth, Venom felt a good deal lucky himself. Though she wasn’t quiet, Beatrice was kind and cordial. At times, it was rather nice to have someone to speak with. Someone who truly understood him. It was bizarrely fulfilling, in a way that he hadn’t realized that he had been deprived of. 

After a bit more walking, he spotted the tips of buildings poking up out of the horizon, followed by wisps of voices in the distance. Beatrice immediately quieted down, settling back against his spine.

“Marseille.” Venom said, with a twinge of excitement in his chest. “We’re here.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the long wait! I'm not sure why this took me so long to finish, but I promise I'll try and improve. Seeing as how I'm just about done with the exposition, I'll have an easier time working on other parts of the story!


	3. Affection

As soon as the buildings came into view, Venom took a hard turn and scuttled off into some nearby bushes. He could immediately feel Beatrice’s confusion in the back of his head as he found a place to hide.

“Well, I can’t exactly just walk in like this, can I? These legs will immediately attract attention.”

 _“Hmm. I suppose you do have a good point, Venom.”_ She seemed hardly more convinced. _“But do you expect us to sit here all day, just in the hopes that he’ll walk by at some point?”_

“N-no, of course not!” He shook his head emphatically. “I...suppose I should have thought a bit more before we arrived…”

They would likely have to stick to the shadows, though that was nothing new to him. The main issue was going to be finding a place to hide in the first place. While some of his fellow assassins likely wouldn’t have had as much issue taking out a person who managed to stumble across them at work, just for the sake of keeping things quiet, just the thought of killing someone unnecessary made his stomach twist in revulsion. He could find a way to be stealthy. It would just take some time to figure out.

Venom glanced off towards some buildings off in the distance, cut through with a small walking path. It was a bit quieter, though he could still spot several people using the smaller path to move in and out of the city. It was safer, but that was still a relative term. Perhaps if he moved quickly, nobody would be able to notice…

A small tendril prodded his shoulder. _“Ah, Venom?”_

“Huh?”

_“If you’d like, I don’t have to be outside of you in order for you to walk. I can just as easily do it from the inside, no extra legs needed.”_

“Wait, you can do that?” He cocked an eyebrow. “Why not mention that earlier?”

_“A-ah, I’m so sorry, dear. It didn’t seem relevant at the time. Er, besides, I…”_

“‘Besides,’ what?”

_“Well, are you sure that is what you want? I’m already partially fused to your spine, but I’d need to properly affix myself to your skeleton so everything will be supported. Doing so will be rather painful…”_

“Oh.” Truth be told, the tethering mechanism isn’t something that he’d thought about too much. Millia’s was simple enough, Angra was fused to her hair, and that was where it stayed. With Zato and Eddie, though, he could never really tell how they remained connected. Eddie was his shadow, of course, and tended to stay pooled at his feet when not in use, but the way that they moved always seemed to him like there wasn’t anything in particular holding them together. Had he not been looking closely enough?

While he was distracted, a tentacle was snaking itself around his waist. Venom was pulled from his thoughts as it tightened around him, squeezing the air from his lungs. Instinctively, his hands flew down to grasp it, but as he did, something equally thick laid itself over his mouth.

 _“I know what you’re thinking, dearest. And I’m sorry.”_ As she spoke, a third tendril reached out, snaring his wrists and painfully wrenching them behind his back. _“This will be quick. Just relax, I promise it won’t hurt too much.”_

Despite her words, Venom couldn’t stop himself from writhing. The blue legs supporting him melted away, making him fall to the ground limply and land on his side. His real legs were still entirely numb, and with his arms twisted back and his mouth covered, he couldn’t think of anything to do but try and wriggle in place, though it accomplished nothing. All the while, he could feel a cool dampness sliding down his back.

Venom would have screamed, if he’d had the ability. He was somewhat adjusted to the sensation of Beatrice moving in and out of the hole in his back, but this was something entirely different. Rather than stay pooled in place like she usually would, he could feel innumerable wispy tendrils reaching out and extending. He could _feel_ her moving around, forcing herself harder and deeper inside of him, and the uncomfortable sensation swiftly became painful. Even his limp legs burned with agony, the feeling traveling all through him at an unbearably slow pace, with him unable to move at all.

He was pretty sure that he passed out at some point. The next thing he knew, he was still splayed out on the grass, lingering throbs of pain running down his spine. The tendrils had finally released their grip, and he instinctively wrapped his arms around his chest. He felt violated, in a way that he couldn’t put into words.

_“How are you feeling?”_

“I-I…” His throat was unexpectedly dry and hoarse. “I didn’t ask for you to do that!”

 _“I know, I know.”_ Beatrice spoke softly. He flinched as a hand laid itself on his shoulder, but it began to stroke soothingly. _“I promise it won’t happen again. I won’t hurt you like that again-”_

“Stand up.” He commanded. He didn’t want to think about what had just happened. All that mattered was that it was over.

With a bit of discomfort, he felt his legs moving. With a bit of mental effort, he was able to mostly get them working in a vaguely functional manner. It took a few tries before he could manage to awkwardly stand on his own two feet. Beatrice had thankfully gone quiet, which made it a good deal easier to focus on keeping his balance.

If he had been thinking more clearly, he probably would have waited a bit longer and gotten a bit more used to just standing on his rickety legs. Instead, he immediately attempted taking a step. He was just trying to not think about what had happened. The sudden shift of weight made him stumble, and he was only able to manage a few more uncoordinated steps before he could feel his legs struggle and fail underneath him.

He found himself falling out of the bushes, only to crash into something soft but firm that managed to interrupt his descent.

“A-ah!” An unfamiliar voice gasped, though still keeping him from falling. “What is-”

“Er- I’m sorry, sir.” With his long bangs hiding the deep embarrassed flush on his cheeks, Venom tried to push off and stand himself back up. “I didn’t mean to-”

As soon as enough weight was put on him, he could feel his legs crumpling once again. Instead of plummeting, he felt himself being held up by strong hands that placed themselves under his arms.

“Woah, hold on a second! I’ve got you.”

Venom managed to find his balance as he leaned against the other man’s grip. He looked up, only to find himself staring into a pair of eyes that were an almost uncomfortably vibrant emerald-green, filled with a look of concern that was directed right at him.

“Are you alright?” He asked. “You just started collapsing like that…”

“I- I’m quite alright, thank you.” This was horrifically embarrassing. He was an assassin, for God’s sake! And here he was, stumbling around like a drunk.

He let out a small groan of discomfort as one of the man’s hands slid too close to the hole in his back. He could feel the other man tense in surprise as he did so, and he carefully lowered Venom onto the ground.

“That was a bad sound, are you hurt?” His voice was soft, somehow even softer than Beatrice’s. The concern in his eyes had intensified as he knelt down in front of Venom, trying to get a good look at him.

“I’m fine-” Venom tried to turn away, but that sent another sharp ache through his body. He hadn’t expecting it to be so harsh, and he flinched, letting out another pained groan.

“Er...pardon my stubbornness, but you really don’t sound fine to me.”

Venom caught another flash of vibrant green, a moment before he felt hands on him. It was instinct to pull away from the touch, but it seemed that the man was very determined to make sure that he was alright. Based on his options, he decided to give up on trying to fight, at risk of looking suspicious. Even if it was unusual for someone to be so concerned about him. The Guild medics hadn’t acted with more than brutal professionalism on the instances where training had gone awry, or when he was a stubborn child constantly at odds with the Guild’s ways, incurring harsh punishments when he couldn’t give the results that they wanted.

“Huh? That’s odd…” The fingers strayed too close to his wound again, and Venom stifled a cry. “Oh! Oh no, I’m so very sorry! I guess it does hurt. You’ve got a cut on your back…”

“I was just walking down the path into town. I think I tripped on something.”

The man was already digging into the satchel he was carrying. “Must have cut yourself on something on the ground? Gah, I always say that they really need to redo the cobble.”

After a bit of fishing around in his bag, he pulled out a small roll of bandages. “I don’t know how deep your wound is, but you should definitely cover it. Keep dirt and muck out. May I?”

“Huh? O-oh, of course.” Venom was still a bit baffled by the concern that this stranger had for him, but something about it was oddly charming. If anything, he was having a hard time being intimidated. Something about the rumpled clothing, mussed-up hair, and thick black spectacles framing his eyes gave off more of the impression of a harried schoolteacher than any kind of seasoned combatant- not that he was going to lower his guard entirely, but at least he currently wasn’t being held at knifepoint.

The bandage was tied around his waist, carefully tightened until he could feel it, but wasn’t hurting more. For a moment, the wrapping around him and the silence in his thoughts made him wonder how Beatrice was going to react to this, but Venom could feel his thoughts go blank as a set of fingers brushed against his cheek.

“I can’t see much of your face with your hair all like that. Do you have a concussion? Let me see your eyes.”

He flinched back. He preferred his hair as it was, it always made him feel safer when nobody could see his face. It didn’t stop the stranger, though, who had retrieved a hairpin from his bag and swept aside his long bangs, pinning them out of his eyes.

“There, isn’t that better? Now let me see…”

With every passing second, Venom felt the itch to reach up and yank his hair back into place. With his vision unobscured, the man’s eyes were even more vibrant. What made it worse was that they were directed right into his, and there was nothing to obscure the way that his cheeks were slowly reddening.

“Hmm. Well, you didn’t mention head pain, and your eyes look normal. Probably no concussion.” The stranger tilted his head, sending a few frayed red curls into his eyes. “Look a bit red, though, are you hot?”

Venom felt a hand cupping his cheek, and he tried his best not to freak out from the fact that _he did not know how to handle this._ Doing so was difficult, and it felt like far too much time had passed before the hand moved away, instead feeling it press against his forehead.

“Just...a bit tired. I’ve been walking all morning, haven’t taken a rest since then.”

“Ah, well there’s your problem! Kinda a bummer, collapsing right outside city limits, but at least I found you, yeah?” The stranger smiled, and Venom immediately knew that he could not be around this man for too much longer.

As soon as the thought ran through his head, though, he felt one of his arms being pulled. The man tossed it over his shoulder, steadily hauling Venom to his feet and supporting his weight.

“I-I, what are you-”

“Mind if I help you into town? If you fell like that, you’re probably really dehydrated. I know a good bistro a little ways in, plenty of good drinks. Maybe you’ll feel better after a glass or two?”

He very much wanted to say no. However, there were two things interfering with that. One- he still couldn’t walk properly, so he wasn’t sure what the alternative was to being assisted. Two- The feeling of warmth against his body, the hand firmly but gently gripping his side, and the faint scent of chamomile that seemed to cling to the man’s clothing had him somehow even more weak-kneed than he already was.

What exactly was this stranger doing to him?

++++++

“Y’know, I just realized. I never got your name!”

Venom glanced up from his glass. The two of them had claimed a little table on the bistro’s veranda, with the quiet bustle of people acting as background noise. Aside from that, things had been a bit quiet, and Venom had been content to just sit and drink the cold tea that the man had ordered for him. As it turned out, there was a reason he smelled so strongly of chamomile- in the time that Venom had drank half of his own glass, he had downed three cups of the fruity-scented tea.

“My name is Venom.” He’d briefly considered using a pseudonym, but ultimately deemed it unnecessary. Nobody knew who he was- not yet, at least.

“Ah, lovely!” The man offered a hand. “Name’s Abbadon, pleasure to meet you! Some folks call me ‘Abby,’ though, so do whatever you’d like.”

Venom accepted the shake. “Pleasure is all mine. Thank you for your assistance. I feel much better now.”

“Not a problem at all, friend! Glad I could be of assistance!”

The assassin went to take another sip, but wound up almost spitting out his mouthful of tea. “Ah...friend?”

Abbadon tilted his head, smiling cheerily. “Yeah! I mean, I know my co-workers like to make fun of me for talking to strangers all the time, but I’ve always believed that strangers are just friends you haven’t made yet!”

In most situations, Venom would have turned and ran away. Something about this felt like a trap to him, but Abbadon just looked so earnest about the whole thing. And, Venom had to remind himself, he had no idea that he was involved with the Guild. As far as Abbadon knew, he was just a random traveler.

He caught those vibrant green eyes looking at him again. “Venom? You’re spacing out, everything okay?”

“I’m sorry.” He felt himself warming in embarrassment. “I just haven’t really had a friend before.”

“Well, then today’s your lucky day! I knew I found you for a reason!” Abbadon burst into a wide grin.

Something about it sent a little flutter in his chest. Trying to ignore it, he reached into one of his pockets, pulled out a few World Dollars, and offered them. “Here. I suppose I owe you for the drinks?”

“Think nothing of it!” The man went quiet for a minute, seemingly deep in thought. “If you are insistent, though, I may have something else in mind.”

Abbadon pushed his chair back and stood up. Venom instinctively tensed, expecting a weapon to be pulled or a gang to show up. Instead, Abbadon walked over to him, offering a hand up.

“The Marseille florist’s show is today! If you feel up for walking, want to come look at the flowers with me?”

That wasn’t anywhere near the first guess that Venom would have made, though it was far from a negative. He knew quite a bit about flowers, himself, it was a bit of a side hobby for him when he knew he could get away with it. Quite frankly, he could think of far worse ways to spend an afternoon than looking at flowers.

He reached out a hand. A little fragment of his mind reminded him that he had come here for a reason, not to fool around. But Abbadon helped him to his feet, smiling warmly, and the thought skittered away, deep into his mind, presumably to wherever Beatrice had gone off to.

“That sounds lovely. I’d be more than happy to join you.”

Trying to stand a second time managed to go far smoother. With a bit of extra effort, Venom found his balance and was able to start walking without immediately tripping and falling on his face. Just for safety, Abbadon lingered within reach as he did so, close enough that Venom could smell the chamomile.

The older man talked all the way there, even if Venom didn’t respond very often. Even without talking, Venom found himself already having a bit of fun. It felt strangely mundane, going for a walk and talk with a friend. It wasn’t something he was at all used to, but he’d be lying to say that he didn’t enjoy it.

A bit further into town, the air became filled with the various aromas of different flowers. Abbadon grabbed him by the wrist, pulling him along as he started running. Before he knew it, Venom found himself surrounded by bushel after bushel of blossoms, laid around by various tables and tents. 

A small crowd had already accumulated, but Abbadon seemed skilled at weaving through. He continued to pull his companion along, until they wound up at a long, striped table, stacked high with arrangements.

Venom looked at him. “What are these?”

“Contest pieces! One of the best part of the show is seeing all the neat arrangements people make. Some of them have names on the base, people like to name the pieces. Let’s take a look!”

Based on the names, it was easy to tell which of them were skilled in the meanings of flowers, and which just put together flowers that looked nice. Nothing wrong with that, he supposed, but there was always something intriguing to him about sending a message or telling a story with flowers. It made the whole thing...well, meaningful.

There was a fair variety of flowers in the arrangements lining the table. A decent portion of the pieces were centered on love and romance, with various little poetic titles to go with them, but there were some that had forgone the concept of romance and told their own story. An interesting standout had to be one labelled ‘Warrior Spirit,’ a bundle of gladiolus, ferns, delphinium, and geraniums, surrounded by a garland of roses. Though personally, he likely would have gone with laurel in place of the roses, but it was a lovely arrangement nonetheless.

He caught Abbadon looking at one of the arrangements with confusion. “Something wrong?”

“No- ah, I suppose a little bit. This one’s kind of confusing me.” He scratched his head, pointing at the piece with his other hand. “It’s called ‘Postwar,’ I have no idea what the name supposed to mean!”

“Hmm? Let me take a look…” 

The arrangement was flat, with a little field of red poppies covering in. Slightly off-center, a single white-and-yellow flower had unfurled slightly higher than the rest of the flowers.

“Ah, I think I understand.”

“You do?”

“Yes.” Raising a hand, Venom gestured to the red flowers. “Red poppies are for for sacrifice and remembrance- given the title, I presume this is meant to symbolize the war against Gear-kind.” He pointed to the single white bloom. “I believe that’s a plumeria, meant to symbolize life, birth, and new beginnings. With this, I believe the intention if the florist was to convey a certain point of view concerning the end of the war- violence and tragedy that is worth remembering, but the hope of new beginnings and new life in the aftermath of all of it.”

If he didn’t know any better, Abbadon looked like he was trying not to cry. “That...that’s so beautiful.” He sniffed, reaching under his glasses to wipe at one eye. “I didn’t know flowers could be so meaningful.”

“You didn’t?”

“I had no idea.” A faint pink blush dusted his pale cheeks. “That makes it kinda embarrassing, though. I’ve been coming here for years and I didn’t actually know what the artists were trying to say! I just liked looking at the pretty flowers.”

“Aesthetic for the sake of aesthetic is a perfectly valid viewpoint. But I’ve always had an interest in the meaning of flowers.” Venom gave a nonchalant shrug.

“That’s so cool, though!” That sparkle had come back to Abbadon’s eyes, and Venom felt that odd flutter in his chest again. “Think you could teach me some stuff? I’d love to know more!”

Venom found himself unexpectedly flustered. “I-if you wish? Of course, I’d be happy to!”

The next hour or so was filled with more bright smiles and cheery laughter than Venom had experienced for most of his life. Abbadon’s attention never left him as he gestured to various flower bundles, keeping his voice calm and professional as he explained the language behind various types of flowers.

“You’re really clever, Venom! I feel really lucky that we wound up coming here together!”

Venom felt like the lucky one. He’d almost entirely forgotten the reason he had come in the first place, content with the bit of silly fun that he’d been given, even if it was just for the afternoon. 

“Ooh, look at that!” Abbadon took off again, towards one of the tents. Venom followed a moment later, and the two wound up side-by-side by a barrel of various flowers. “That one’s such a pretty color! Just like your eyes!”

At that moment, Venom realized that his hair had been pinned back all day. Usually, he would feel unbearably uncomfortable having his face exposed, yet he had managed to forget it entirely. How could that be? He’d never enjoyed being visible before. It never felt safe.

Something tickled under his nose. He flinched back, only to find that Abbadon was holding a flower out to him.

The man beamed. “Surprise!”

“Huh?” Venom blindly reached for the flower. “What did you-”

“One of the merchants here is a friend of mine. He’s always got the best roses. I thought I owed you something for the lesson!”

“Rose?” He immediately regretted not looking. Instead of sharp thorns digging into his fingers, though, there was only a smooth stalk. With that, he looked it over. “...Purple?”

Abbadon shrugged innocently. “It was a lovely color! I thought it suited you.”

Venom felt heat rise in his face. Lavender...he knew that he’d explained the meaning of roses, but he couldn’t recall if lavender had been one of them. Abbadon _had_ to knew what he was doing...didn’t he? Could it have just been a fluke?

While he was distracted, he didn’t notice that the flower was pulled from his grasp. He came back to the feeling of something brushing by the side of his face. His companion carefully eased the stem behind one of his ears, using part of the hairpin to keep it in place. As he did, Venom caught the man’s face drifting very close to his. The smell of chamomile invaded his nose, and without thinking, Venom found himself holding his breath.

“There, that should do it!” Venom felt an odd sting of disappointment as Abbadon pulled away from him. Before he could say anything, he had already turned away. “Come on! There’s usually a lady who makes positively heavenly dragon chops, you should try it! Ah, unless you’re vegetarian, they also make a wonderful vegetable stir-fry!”

As soon as he tried to take a step, Venom felt a sharp ache in his head. With it, his senses swiftly became overwhelmed. Everything suddenly felt too crowded, too noisy. He had to get somewhere safe, somewhere quiet. Some place that wasn’t here.

He realized that he was sprinting. He pushed through the crowd, desperately looking for some place to hide. With a bit of frantic tunnel vision, he spotted a an alleyway in the distance. Immediately, he ran towards it.

The old brick was oddly calming, cold and dry against his back as he slumped against it. The throbbing pain in his skull was gradually fading. That victory was short-lived, as he realized that he had ran away without warning, and seemingly for no reason.

“Damn it…” He covered his face with his hands. What was going on with him? Was Abbadon’s presence really affecting him this severely? So much that it was literally _painful_ now?

_“Venom?”_

He jolted up, glancing around in panic until he registered the voice. “Huh? Beatrice?”

_“You need to stop this, Venom.”_

“Stop...yes, I know. I shouldn’t have run away. I don’t know what happened, I’m just-”

 _That’s not what I’m saying.”_ The woman’s voice had just an edge of sternness to it. _“Have you spent any time at all today looking for the target? Do you have any idea where Jefferson is?”_

“Er-” The tranquility that had gradually building all day was swiftly swallowed up by a cold feeling that flooded his chest. “No, I’m afraid. I haven’t found anything yet.”

_“Any reason why that may be?”_

Venom flinched. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to to get so distracted-”

_“You’ve wasted all day! How do you expect to succeed if you get so easily swayed? How are you going to impress Zato?”_

Her words felt like a slap in the face. He looked at the ground, and a few strands of white hair came loose, sliding back over his face. “I-I-”

 _“And another thing.”_ She cut him off once more. _”I don’t think you should be spending time with that man.”_

“Huh? But why?”

_”I don’t think he’s good for you. How do you know he isn’t leading you on? Besides, he’s a distraction. You can’t afford distractions.”_

Venom slumped against the wall, wrapping arms around himself. He didn’t know how to reply without sounding like a whiny child. “I know, I know, but...I think I _like_ him. He’s very kind. He makes me feel happy.”

_”He bought you a flower. What does that really mean? I think you’re getting just a bit too attached to him. I know you don’t have too many friends, but you can’t let that distract you.”_

“I suppose.” Loathe to admit it, she did have a point. He _was_ being naive. “I shouldn’t have let myself get distracted so easily.”

Though she was still blocked by the bandages wrapped around his body, he could almost feel her calming hands on his shoulders. _”Good boy. I know you’re smart! Just a little distracted. It’s alright! Just as long as you remember what’s important.”_

“Yes, Beatrice. I understand.” He nodded.

“Venom!”

“Huh?” The voice made him turn. “Is that-"

“Venom? Are you there? Venom!”

Abbadon skidded past the alley, noticing him as he did so. He spun around, wearing a look of half-panic, half-relief. Wordlessly, he lunged, throwing his arms around the assassin and pulling him into a tight hug before he could pull away.

“Abbadon? Is something wrong?” Asked Venom.

“Is something wrong? I should be asking _you_ that!” He sounded less panicked, but only slightly so. “I was so worried!”

“Y-you what?” Venom was still trying to wrap his brain around the sudden hug. It did make his back hurt a little, but the tightness was comforting.

“God, I’m so glad I found you.” Seemingly convinced that Venom wasn’t going to bolt again, Abbadon let him go. “I know you’re not from here, but you have to be careful! The gangs in this town can be really dangerous, so you can’t just wander off into alleys! I was terrified that someone had snatched you right off of the street!”

“I’m sorry.” This was startling. Despite everything he had said before, he was already finding himself swayed again. Abbadon was really worried about him?

“Gah, just as long as I know you’re safe.” He replied, at almost a whisper. Eyeing Venom with careful concern, he reached out to sweep the loose strands of hair back behind his ear. “Why did you run off like that? Did I say something wrong?”

“No! No, I…” With a little embarrassment, he realized that he was practically pinned against the wall, Abbadon’s bright eyes looking right at him. “I had a headache. Everything was too loud, and I felt like I had to find someplace quiet.”

Brows furrowing with worry, the older man took him by the wrist. “Headache? I thought I didn’t see any concussion signs, but maybe I didn’t do a well enough job. Think you can walk okay?”

Venom pulled himself away from the wall, managing to stand again. “I’m fine now, I promise. Should we go back to the show?”

Abbadon looked no less concerned. “I know you might feel okay now, but I’m worried you might faint later on. You can’t be too careful with these sorts of things.” He turned his head to look out of the alley. “The place I work at isn’t too far from here. That’s where I keep most of my supplies. I can look you over, and then you can take a rest if you need. Does that sound okay?”

Venom expected Beatrice’s voice to start talking to him again, deriding him for already getting distracted, but she was silent. Still, he couldn’t help but feel as though he were betraying her through his disobedience.

“Yes, if that’s alright.” He replied, slightly hesitant. “A rest sounds nice.”

“Alright, good.” With a nod, Abbadon watched as he started walking. “Let me know if you feel dizzy, okay? I can try and carry you if you don’t feel like you can walk.”

There was no dizziness, but as they walked off, Venom could swear he could feel the hole in his back burning.


	4. A Kindness

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long to get back to this! College started up again and I've been pretty busy, but I promise I'm still working!
> 
> Thanks to Nana for help with the story!

“Ngh…”

“Venom?” For the fourth time on their short walk, Abbadon stopped, turning to find his companion half-hunched and breathing heavily. “What’s wrong?”

“I’m sorry.” The assassin replied, clearly pained. “My back…”

“Huh? Is your wound acting up? Mind if I take a look?”

“I- er, of course.”

Abbadon turned and approached him from behind. Fortunately, the street that they were on was far quiet than the rest of them had been, so they weren’t causing any disruptions. No people around also meant that nobody could see them, which was nice. Venom disliked the idea of being stared at.

The bandage was tugged on, moved slightly to expose the skin of Venom’s lower back. For a moment, he thought that the pain was abating as Abbadon looked the wound over, but it flared back to life as the nearby skin was prodded. He bit back a scream, leaning away from his touch.

“Ah, that’s...that can’t be good…” Thankfully, he felt no more hands on his back. The only thing he could feel was the man’s breath tickling his skin. 

“How does it look?”

“It’s rather strange. I didn’t even notice because it was bleeding so little, but it’s a very deep cut. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you managed to nick your spine somehow. Which is _definitely_ not good.” The bandage was moved back into place. “Either way, I don’t think you should be walking in such a state, what was I even thinking?”

Abbadon walked back around him. After taking a few little steps away, he knelt down, holding his arms behind him. “Hop on.”

“What?”

“Didn’t you hear me? I don’t want you walking anywhere as you are. Especially if you have a concussion, I don’t want you falling down again. Get on my back, I can carry you for the last couple of blocks.”

The concept didn’t really sink in until he climbed on. Strong arms reached down and hooked under his legs as Abbadon stood back up. Venom threw his arms around the man’s shoulders for balance, and found himself pressed tightly against his back.

“Feeling alright back there?”

“Yes. I’m alright.” It took a moment for Venom to reply, to catch his breath. Not out of tiredness, but because of how oddly it felt. He’d never been so close to another man like this, not physically, especially not in such a casual way. He wasn’t used to being touched in general, but Abbadon was treating it like it was utterly normal.

Truth be told, he found that he was actually enjoying it quite a bit. The chamomile smell had already become familiar to him, and the way Abbadon carried him was both strong and gentle. The gentle sway of footsteps as he walked down the street was unexpectedly calming. He was practically falling asleep from a combination of that and tiredness from walking around all day. 

It almost felt natural to let his head rest on the man’s shoulder, curled around the nape of his neck. He buried his nose in soft red hair, letting the repetitive movement and soft fragrance calm his thoughts until he could feel himself dozing off.

+++++

Venom awoke to the sensation of something tapping his cheek. His eyes flew open, only to be greeted by a familiar face.

“You’re awake! Good. I was worried I would have to do this while you were asleep.”

“Abbadon?” Venom sat up, flinching a little at the twinge in his back. 

Looking around, he realized that he was in some sort of examination room, perched on a table. As soon as the realization hit him, any lingering tiredness was replaced with cold panic and stiffened muscles. He wasn’t supposed to fall asleep. He shouldn’t have let his guard down. There were all manner of details that he couldn’t account for now. He couldn’t say for certain where he was, or what was going on.

The room suddenly felt freezing. His eyes tore around the room, searching for an exit, and then something that could be used as a weapon. About a half-second before he jumped off of the table and tried to run, he was interrupted by a hand pressing into his chest.

“Shh. Relax. I can tell that you’re stressed, but just try to breathe. Can you tell me what’s wrong?”

“Where are we? Where am I?” Despite his best efforts, his voice still trembled a bit.

“I understand, it is a bit disorienting.” Abbadon offered a gentle, inviting smile. “I took you to my workplace so I could take a better look at you.”

“And that is…?”

He tilted his head. “Eh? Oh! Right, my bad. I’m the on-site medic for the Black Metal Shipping Company. The warehouse was close, so I thought this was the best option.”

“Oh.” Venom let the tension leave him, and he sat back. “I presume this is your office?”

“Correct-a-mundo, friend!” Abbadon made a little sweeping gesture to the room around them. “This is my job! And, ah, between you-me, I’m in good business. You’d think after the third sprained wrist, some of these guys would learn to not lift more weight than they can carry!”

The man gave a soft chuckle, shaking his head as he started digging around in one of the cabinets. “Anyway, I suppose I should have asked this already, but how are you feeling?”

“A tad disoriented, but I’m sure it will pass soon enough.” Venom offered a weak smile of his own. “My back doesn’t hurt as much now, nor my head.”

“Hmm. Alright. Good to know.” A few items were pulled from the shelves. “Well, the pain should have eased up a bit, I put a bit of lidocaine on it when we got back.”

“Pardon, but exactly how long have we _been_ back?”

“Not long. You woke up while I was applying it, and we got back more-or-less right before then.”

“I see...Thank you, I know that’s kind of…”

“Don’t worry about it! I’d be a little wary, too.”

Abbadon returned with a half-filled box. Venom watched him with idle interest, still a bit on-edge but trying not to look it. Though he’d hate to admit it, part of it was due to a wariness of having something sharp and shiny pointed in his direction. The only experience with medical professionals he had ever was, of course, with the Guild, and they never made an effort to appear inviting or kind. By no means was he going to run off like a terrified child, but it still unnerved him, just a bit.

“I know you told me not to worry about the disorientation, but I’m not going to discount it as a symptom.” The various tools squeaked and grated against one another as they were dug through. “I’m going to do a few tests, if you’re up for them. Based on what I’ve seen, I’m not sure if you’re concussed, dehydrated, or if it’s some sort of heat exhaustion. I’m also not sure how much the back injury factors into things, but I suppose that’ll come with some of the tests, yeah?”

“That sounds fine to me.”

“Wonderful! Just follow my instructions, and let me know if anything is making you uncomfortable.”

As silly as Abbadon had come across, it was clear that he was skilled and professionally focused when in his own element. Before he could blink, the assassin had a thermometer under his tongue and a stethoscope pressed to his ribs. At first, the movement was a tad jarring, but he quickly grew accustomed to it, allowing the man to pull and tug and press against him as he pleased.

“37.5. A little higher than normal, but we _were_ outside all day. Slightly elevated heart rate, but still within normal parameters.” Abbadon spoke as he scribbled down on a clipboard. “Well, your vitals seem to be perfectly stable, mind if I do a few more tests?”

Venom nodded. He felt a hand sliding down his back, but the sensation gradually faded the further down he went. For a moment, he felt a spike of panic, wondering if something had gone wrong with his spine again, but he just as quickly reminded himself of the purpose of the lidocaine.

“How odd…”

“Huh? Is something wrong?”

“Well, I suppose I would consider you a very lucky man, Venom.” Abbadon’s voice came from behind him. “I was right, this cut is very deep. Yet it’s hardly bleeding! I can’t even find any shrapnel or signs of spinal damage. If anything, it seems you _may_ have nicked a spinal nerve, and even then, it doesn’t look too severe. I don’t even think stitches will be necessary, though I am going to wrap it again just in case. It’ll keep bacteria out, at least.”

“That...that’s good…” It would have been difficult to explain that the slight tremor in his voice was more out of how Beatrice would react to being sewn shut inside of him, so he hoped that it would be convincing enough that he was merely afraid of stitches.

Abbadon gave him a pat on the back, which he could hardly feel. “That should do the trick! Nothing seems too out of the ordinary, I suppose it’s possible you were just tired and dehydrated. Still, I’d prefer to perform a couple of cognition tests, just to make sure there isn’t a head injury that I should be worried about.”

The man walked across the room and switched off the light. A small snap resounded in the small room, and a dot of white light appeared, offering just enough illumination to outline the side of his face.

“My magic skills aren’t much to write home about, but they still have some uses.” The weak light traced his lips as they bent into a smile. He approached the table once more, keeping his face and hand at Venom’s eye level. 

“Look at the light. Watch as I move it, and follow it with your eyes as best as you can.”

It seemed like a simple test. At first, he was able to follow it with ease. The longer it went on, though, the more distracted he could feel himself becoming. Every so often, the light would catch the older man’s eyes, and the green twinkle would distract him enough to look away.

“That’s a bit worrying. You seem to have trouble focusing.” Even in the dark room, the little frown on his face was clear. “And you keep turning yourself. Can you keep your head still?”

Venom reminded himself that he was trying to be calm and subtle, and that as of the present, he was neither. The years of obedience that the Guild had more or less carved into him surfaced, and he found himself sitting stone-still, following his directions perfectly.

“There we go! Excellent work.” Footsteps tapped away, and the light bobbed towards the far wall. 

Venom uttered a quiet thanks inside his thoughts. Even with his training, he wasn’t sure how much longer he could stay relaxed. He wasn’t sure what it was about this man that was making him behave so erratically. He didn’t think that such a reaction would come from merely having a friend.

He blinked as the light was flipped back on. After letting himself adjust, he noticed Abbadon looking at him oddly.

“Something wrong?” He asked.

“You look a bit flushed.” Replied Abbadon, as he approached. “That’s odd. I’m not sure what your normal temperature is, but I didn’t think it was that bad…”

“I’m fine, I promise I’m-”

With all his training, all his years of experience to remain calm and collected, Venom couldn’t stop himself from making an absurd, high-pitched _squeak_ as a hand cupped his cheek. Part of it was due to the fact that good lord, he must have been warm if his hand felt so cold against him, but most of it was pure, unfettered panic and confusion. This wasn’t the first time he’d done something like this, so why was he somehow _more_ taken off-guard than he had been the last time?

“Ah, what was that?” Abbadon paused to snicker. “You do feel warm, that’s worrying. Is that was that noise was? It was kind of adorable. You sounded like a kitten.”

In an attempt to lessen his embarrassment, Venom reached up and tugged on the hairpin, letting some of his white locks slide back over his face. It worked for all of two seconds, before Abbadon reached out to sweep it back.

“Why do you do that? Why do you keep trying to hide your face?” Not a word of it felt accusatory, instead sounding genuinely curious. “Do I frighten you?”

“No, I-” he tried to think of a way to not sound rude. “I feel safer. I don’t like being looked at.”

Green eyes widened in realization. “Ah! I see. So it’s shyness, then? Well, I suppose I can’t fault you for that. Bit of a pity, though, hiding such a pretty face.”

The room went quiet for a solid minute. Venom was so used to thinking calmly and rationally, but now it felt like his mind was jammed, with all the cogs moving out of synch.

“What did you say?” The question managed to come out almost calmly.

The question sent a line of crimson lighting up Abbadon’s cheeks. “Oh, um, pardon my forwardness. But you _do_ have a very beautiful face. A very impressive physique, as well. Is this news to you? Because it certainly shouldn’t be.”

Beautiful...Zato had called him beautiful, only once. It had been a passing remark, but Venom had held on to it ever since. Of course, his lord was blind now, and who knew if he even still thought that of him, or if it truly had been a meaningless, offhand comment.

“No, I suppose it is.” Venom didn’t like to think of himself as a particularly vanity-driven person. He didn’t think himself abnormally good-looking. It just seemed like an irrelevant fact.

Abbadon himself made a rather undignified noise and sighed, turning as he pressed a hand over his face. Though he assumed it was meant to be outside his range of hearing, the assassin’s trained ear managed to pick up what the man was mumbling to himself.

“Damn it, now what do I do?...Cute stranger just appears out of nowhere and he doesn’t even think he’s-”

“Er, Abbadon?”

Turning back, the man went even redder as he took in Venom’s shocked expression. “Uh...y-you heard that, didn’t you?”

“Apologies, I didn’t mean to-”

“No, no, it’s fine!” He covered his eyes with a hand. “I’m sorry, I just feel like a creep now. I’m not trying to do this as like an excuse to get my weird pervert hands on you or anything, I _swear_ , I can- I can already feel my teachers’ disappointment with me, let alone if my _boss_ found out. Oh man, now it just sounds like I’m only worried about getting caught, I didn’t-”

“Abbadon.” Venom interrupted him. “It’s alright. I’m not upset with you.”

“Sheesh, I’m sorry, Venom. Promise I didn’t mean it like that.” Abbadon’s voice went soft.

“I know you didn’t. It’s fine.” In spite of his own words, his face still felt warm. “I suppose as long as we’re on the subject...I have a question for you.”

“Huh? What is it?”

“This.” He pointed up at the rose that had managed to stay snugly in place. “When you gave it to me. What were you trying to say?”

By that point, the older man’s face was practically the color of his hair. “W-well, um, it seemed a bit brash to offer you a red one- even I know what those are supposed to mean- was I still too forward? I thought purple would be more appropriate, if I remembered what you told me correctly. This sort of thing isn’t really my forte, but…”

Oh. So he _had_ explained purple? So that meant…

“You...you like me?”

Somehow, Abbadon managed to regain a shred of composure. “Well...corny as it sounds, you meet a cute stranger who needs help lying by the side of the road, I though I could get to know you better if we spent a little time together. You seemed like an interesting guy, even if you were a little reserved, that’s why I asked if you wanted to go look at the flowers with me.”

“I see.” Venom marveled at his own calmness, consider how decidedly _not_ calm his thoughts were being right now. Someone had just outright said that they had an interest in him, that they actually _liked_ him. Was this betrayal? He told himself that he was only loyal to Zato, that no other person would come before his loyalty. He wasn’t supposed to like other men, so why was his traitorous heart beating so swiftly that he felt like it was about to burst?

“I-I mean, I’m not gonna make you say yes or anything, I’m fine with being just friends if you’d prefer! Or even if you just want me to finish looking you over and then never have to look at me again, that’s fine! Just…” Abbadon paused, sighing. “Be honest with me, okay? Just be straightforward.”

For a rare moment in his life, Venom really and truly _wanted_. He was used to longing for things, but never outright wanting them, because that often meant that the last traces of impulsivity within him would slip out and cause trouble. He had _wanted_ to host a forbidden beast, he _wanted_ to impress Zato in order to earn his respect.

And now, his impulsive little heart was telling him that he wanted Abbadon.

The words tumbled out without care. “I’ve never had a partner.”

“You haven’t?” It was hard to pinpoint the man’s expression. “No friends, no partners...where did you even come from?”

“I’ve just never been close to people, I suppose.” It wasn’t a lie. “I travel around a lot.” Also not technically a lie.

As it was, it seemed to be enough of an explanation. “A wandering stranger…” Abbadon smiled at him. “Like you walked out of my dreams.”

The next few minutes were a blur. Venom wasn’t sure when or how that they had started to kiss, only knowing that he practically melted as soon as he felt the warmth so close to him. Abbadon not only smelled of tea, but there was a lingering taste on his lips that he eagerly took in. He’d realized that he’d never well and truly kissed another man before, but his partner was careful and tried to guide him, slowly tilting forward to meet him.

He wasn’t expecting hands on him, so he flinched when he felt fingers trailing up and down his back. He briefly pulled away, but relaxed when he felt how gentle they were being. One hand slipped under the edge of his shirt, lightly tracing the well-defined muscles.

A few words in whispered French floated by his ear. Even if he didn’t understand them, he felt himself shudder and let himself be taken back into a kiss.

Was he doing this right? Was this even proper at all? By that point, he couldn’t bring himself to care. He only focused on the warmth pressed against him, the soft moans that he couldn’t keep from escaping his throat, the fingers tangled in his hair.

“You don’t have to hold back...go ahead. You can touch me. I want to feel you.”

Hesitantly, he obliged. He could feel his body struggling to bridge the gap, but Abbadon took his hand and began to guide it. The older man definitely looked far slimmer than he was, but as he ran hands down his body, he noticed some faint curves and ridges of muscle. Venom felt enticed to keep touching, letting his fingers trace the surface, feeling warmth radiate through the thin fabric of his partner’s shirt.

“Does it feel good?”

The coolness of the table made him tense up as he was pressed back against it. Abbadon climbed onto it, onto him, still kissing fiercely. Despite what he would have expected, he never felt trapped. Abbadon never made him feel trapped. There always felt like there was an easy way to push him off if he decided that he disliked this.

“You’re so beautiful, Venom…” The words were soft, but each made his heart hammer faster. “So, so beautiful…”

In spite of the heated mood, he still stifled a gasp as the hand on his back slid down to his flank. Fingers teasingly traced the rim of his belt, with the tips hooking under slightly to bite into the skin of his hip.

“Is this alright?” Abbadon’s voice was low, almost soothing. “You’re not used to this, are you? Is this okay?”

It was so warm, he felt like his skin was buzzing. “Y-yes, please- teach me.”

He caught sight of a brilliant smile by the edge of his vision. “It would be my pleasure. I’m proud to be your first.”

Though if he could allow himself to be spoiled for a moment, he sorely wished that his partner would hurry it up already. He wasn’t used to this sort of sensation, it almost felt like it was making him dizzy. 

Still, even with the slight disorientation, he knew that the hands were still busy at work on him, unlatching the loops of his belt and carefully easing it loose. Pausing for a moment, seemingly for no other reason than to tease him, he felt something finally slip by, sliding underneath the layers of his clothing to-

“A-AAAGH!”

Venom could feel his body writhing and arching against the tabletop- not out of pleasure, but out of pure, unbelievably agonizing _pain_. In one moment, it felt like someone had taken an axe and had attempted to cleave his head open.

His hands flew up to grasp at his throbbing temples, and was almost shocked to find no blood. It was difficult to think through it. All he could manage was a scream. Even the squirming wasn’t of his own volition.

“Venom?!” Abbadon’s voice felt distant. “Venom, what’s wrong?!”

He couldn’t answer. Even if he did know, it hurt too much for him to speak coherently.

He was vaguely aware of the warmth and weight on him pulling away, the weak sound of footsteps tapping off elsewhere. In spite of himself, his mind begged for it to come back. It felt like abandonment. He just needed some kind of reassurance, even if it was a bold-faced lie of ‘you’re going to be okay.’ It may have been cowardly, but he was terrified.

Something like a mosquito bite stung the side of his arm. His other hand flew towards it, but yet another one grabbed it by the wrist.

“Relax, relax.” It was Abbadon’s voice, low and calm as he murmured reassurances. “It’s alright. You’re alright.”

It was difficult to believe at first, but the longer he felt the sting, the less he began to feel of the splitting headache. Venom released the breath that he had been holding and slumped back into the tabletop. He could feel his heart pounding harshly in his ears, to the point where it almost drowned out his staccato breathing.

The sting went away, and he spotted an empty syringe being pulled out of his arm.

“What did you-”

“Painkillers. I-I’m so sorry, Venom.” Abbadon looked mortified. “I promise I didn’t mean to hurt you like that.”

“No! It isn’t- you don’t-” How could he explain? The whole thing had just come out of nowhere!

A hand reached down to gently stroke his cheek. “I shouldn’t have let myself get so riled up. It’s probably best to let you rest now. Maybe you’re having migraines? Either way, it’s been a long day, you really should get some sleep.”

Venom wanted to protest, but had the feeling that it would be pointless. “Alright.” He sighed. With more than a little embarrassment, he reached down to fix his belt and put everything back in place as Abbadon turned away.

“The couches over in the worker’s lounge are a lot more comfortable than my table. I don’t think my coworkers would mind, the weekends shifts are always quiet, anyways.” Abbadon offered a hand. “Do you need help walking there? It isn’t too far, but...”

Abbadon wasn’t meeting his eyes. Even as Venom reached out and let the man help him up, his gaze was everywhere but at his. He wanted to say something, but nothing came. He didn’t truly understand. Was he upset with him? Embarrassed? With his lack of experience, he couldn’t tell. He just knew it was bad.

Sterile white gave way to plain gray stone. It certainly looked enough like a warehouse, with giants racks of boxes branching out in every direction. In spite of its size, it was eerily quiet, aside from distant, echoing thuds and indistinct murmurs.

“So...shipping, huh?”

“Mm? Oh. Yeah. Not the most exciting of jobs.” At the very least, it was enough to get Abbadon to crack a nervous smile. “There’s probably more glamorous places that you could be stuck in, but I don’t really mind.”

They were both quiet for the rest of the short walk. The lounge was small and simple as he looked around, but something about it made it seem far more peaceful and inviting than the lavish quarters that the assassins operated out of. 

“Ey, Abby’s back!”

Venom flinched in surprise, but Abbadon kept a strong grip on him. From the shadows in the back of the room, a couple of large figures stood up and began walking towards them. With his free hand, Abbadon raised to wave.

“Mantas, hey! Wasn’t expecting you to still be around!”

One of the men offered a cheery, lopsided smile. In spite of his massive size, Venom noticed a pleasant warmth to his expression. He was so puzzled that he almost fell off of the couch that Abbadon was trying to help him down on.

The other man shrugged. “Boss asked me ‘n Mantas to help out with some stock that just came in. We figured you’d be gone all day lookin’ at flowers!”

“I planned to, but things got a little mixed-up. On that note, I want you to meet my new friend!”

“Friend?” Venom watched Mantas look at him with intrigue. “Handsome guy, what’s your name?”

“Venom.” He was going to offer a hand to shake, but the painkillers filled his body with a sort of numbness, and the best he could manage was an awkward, floppy wave. “A pleasure.”

“Pleasure’s all ours!” The second one said. “Not often Abby brings someone new into the office! We keep tellin’ him he needs to get laid, but-”

“Oh, Jesus, come on…” Abbadon went pink. “I-it isn’t like that!”

Jesus shrugged. “Hey, your loss. Mantas’ right, he’s a looker!”

“Jesuuuus…”

“Oi, play nice.” Mantas shook his head in disappointment. He sent Venom an aside glance. “Please forgive these two, they’re always like this.”

“It’s fine, really. Your co-worker is very kind.” Venom offered a polite smile.

“Don’t feel about about telling this idiot to shut his mouth. Won’t get into his thick skull otherwise.” He chuckled a bit. “Anyway, I think everyone got introduced, but I’m Mantas, and this is Jesus. We’re the ‘doers’ around here, but Abby’s the one who keeps the whole operation smooth. Tapes us back together when we break stuff, I guess.”

“You say ‘stuff,’ which usually means one of your arms.”

“Yeah, yeah, Abby, I get it. Anyway, where’d you find this guy?”

“I crashed into him on the way back from the morning pickup.” Abbadon sat down next to him on the couch. “Well, more like Venom crashed into me. Guess he must have been walking too long and just collapsed!

Jesus offered a wry grin. “Really? A traveler? Where you from?”

“Ah...Britain, I’m from Britain.”

“Oh, figured! You’ve got that look about you.” Mantas nodded. “Pardon me, but what brings you to our neck of the woods? Marseille is a long way from where you came from!”

“Like your companion said. I’m merely traveling.” Venom replied, as calmly as he could manage.

“A drifter? Don’t see many of those this time of year!”

“Is it a job thing? You get sacked?”

Mantas gave him a glare. “Jesus! Where are your manners!”

He threw up his hands in defense. “Hey, I didn’t mean nothin’ by it! Ever since Cronos left, we’ve been short-staffed. Not my fault Abby brings in a guy who looks like he can bench-press a table.”

Venom was pretty sure that he could not bench-press a table, but appreciated the sentiment nonetheless.

“What, are you saying we should hire him? He’s injured!”

“Chill, Abby, geez.” Jesus shook his head in disappointment. “I’m not saying that we _need_ ta’ hire him _right now,_ gotta do background and interviews and the like, but he seems a lot more polite than the last guy and about as strong- well, gotta see him in action first, but still.”

Abbadon sent Venom an uncomfortable look. “Y-you don’t have to listen to him, he’s just being-”

“Don’t worry about it.” The assassin waved him down. “I’m rather honored that you seem to have such faith in me.”

The doctor went pink. “Well, um, I-I wouldn’t be _opposed_ if you wanted a job here. Definitely not in the current state you’re in, of course, but once you recover- o-oh, please don’t think I’m trying to make you-”

Something about Abbadon had a tendency to plant rebellious thoughts in his head. Venom knew why he was here, every little detail, but instinct was telling him to say yes. 

Could he even get away with it? The Guild didn’t know where he was, he was practically a fugitive...he had been doing this all for Zato, but had Zato ever loved him nearly as much as Abbadon did? Would Zato _ever_ love him? Would he be taking this all for granted if he threw away this chance just for his lord? And, most interestingly enough...could this be the start of a normal life for him?

He wasn’t really sure what to think. As his thoughts chased one another in circles, the cycle was broken by the sound of a door banging open.

All three men turned to the sound gleefully, smiling. “Hello, boss!” Mantas spoke. “Perfect timing! We’ve got a guy we’re thinking of hiring!”

“Really?” A deep voice filled Venom’s ears. “Let me take a look at him.”

Venom felt cold fear welling up in his chest. He recognized those eyes, that jawline, the meticulously slicked back black hair. Though he wore a friendly smile instead of the deep scowl in the photo on the wanted list, he could recognize the man immediately.

It was Jefferson.


	5. For The Best

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gahhh I am so so inconsistent!! Thank you so much to anyone and everyone who is willing to put up with my shitty scheduling!
> 
> This chapter made me put 'graphic depictions of violence' in the header so approach with a bit of caution.

Venom was generally the courteous type, not one to use profanities- but right now, every single curse word he knew was flying through his head in a jumbled conglomeration at about 200 miles an hour.

Ok. Ok. He didn’t need to panic. Not yet, anyway. Still too many variables to make a sound decision. He wasn’t going to panic. That was how assassins got killed.

“Good afternoon, men.” Despite its deepness, Jefferson’s voice was remarkably soft. Then again, if he sounded more conspicuous, it was very unlikely that he would have been able to become as powerful a drug lord as he was.

“Afternoon, boss!” Abbadon smiled back. “How’d the conference go?”

“Oh, nothing really anything interesting, Abbadon. Just divvying up some shipment deals, all boring bureaucratic work.” He paused, turning to Venom. “Besides, it sounds like we have something more important on the table right now?”

“Ah! Absolutely right.” The man nodded enthusiastically. “Boss, this is Venom! He’s a drifter looking for a new job!”

Jefferson began looking him over with incriminating eyes. Venom felt himself unconsciously stiffen up as he was stared at, but tried to appear calm and unconcerned.

“Don’t get many drifters this time of year. What’s with the bandages?”

“Well, know how I’m always complaining about the cobble job outside town? Finally claimed a victim! I helped him into Marseille. He’s really smart, though, I think he’d be super helpful with the inventory scheduling!”

Venom wasn’t sure why Abbadon was being so loose-lipped. Maybe it was just his nature, or it could have been that he was trying to make him look good.

Apparently, it must have been accomplishing something, as Jefferson smiled politely and stuck out a hand.

“Dunn Jefferson. I oversee and run the place.”

“A pleasure.” Venom remembered a moment too late the painkillers still running through his system and making his movements awkward. Jefferson paid it no mind, snatching his drooping hand roughly and shaking it.

“So, ‘Venom,’ eh? That a nickname or something?

Another stream of curses ran through his thoughts. He really should have used a pseudonym, after all. “Of a sort. Most people call me ‘Venom.’”

Jefferson shrugged. “Well, we’re no strangers to odd names. That won’t be any sort of issue. As long as you can do your job well, it doesn’t matter much what you look like or what your name is.”

“He’s from England, boss!” Abbadon cut in again. “Might be nice to have some outside ideas on ways to change the company!”

“Pardon, but I do tend to move around frequently. If you’re looking for British expertise, I don’t think I’ll be able to help in that regard.”

“Oh, not to worry.” Replied Jefferson, waving a hand. “Any sort of new ideas may be useful. Still, I suppose the main goal would be to see if you can carry things. Are you strong?”

“Very strong, sir!” The ginger nodded fervently. “I think you’ll-”

“Abbadon.” Venom said. His voice came out far sharper that he intended, making the man flinch. “Abbadon.” He tried again, quieter. “Apologies. But I can speak for myself. Your efforts are appreciated, but it’s alright.” Still thoroughly embarrassed, he picked at the hairpin that he’d forgot was there, sending a cascade of white hair back over his face.

Trying his damndest not to turn red, Venom frantically tried to push it back where it was supposed to be. “I’m sorry, that wasn’t supposed to be-”

“That’s...interesting.” He caught Jefferson’s intrigued expression, looking right at him. “That’s an odd dye-job, Venom. How’d you manage that?”

A nervous little quiver twitched in his chest. The hair was pushed away, neatly pinned with the purple rose. “Just a personal preference, is all. If you have a problem with it, I’d be more than happy to-”

“No, no.” The man crossed an arm across his chest, stroking his chin in thought. “Something about it just seems...it’s some sort of eye, right? Something about it feels familiar.” 

Shit. Shit. The nervous quiver zipped back and forth across his chest. He tried not to let his breaths shallow, at the risk of looking suspicious. “Perhaps it’s my face? I do have a very common one. Maybe you’ve just seen someone with a similar face.”

Jefferson shook his head. “No, that isn’t it. It’s definitely your hair. Have we met somewhere before, Mr. Venom?” For the briefest of moments, he caught what seemed like a malevolent twinkle deep within the man’s dark eyes.

Dammit. God dammit. Had his paranoia been right the whole time? Had this whole thing been one big ploy, right from the start? Was Jefferson just stringing him along until he let something slip? Or was he just seeing things that weren’t there?

His eyes flicked between the three other men. Nobody was letting anything show. Abbadon kept the same innocent look, while Jesus and Mantas were almost stony-faced. He wasn’t sure what to think. And for an assassin, that was all but a death sentence.

“Pardon me, Mr. Jefferson.” Venom moved to stand up. “I don’t think we’ve met before. This may be abrupt, but I’ve been a bit longer than I’ve intended to. I still need to find a place to stay for the night. I’d prefer to do that before it gets too dark out, if that’s alright with you. I’d be more than happy to return for an interview tomorrow.”

In his own stress, he’d completely forgotten about the painkillers for a second time. He managed to stand up, only to immediately stumble back against the armrest. The lack of balance wound up biting him in the ass even further, as when he tried to sit back down proper, the back of his head slammed against the carved wooden rim of the sofa.

A small clamor of confused voices spoke over each other while dizziness spun through his head. When he had enough wits to see straight, Abbadon was all but sitting in his lap, looking over him like a distressed parent.

“Are you alright, Venom? Can you hear me?” A hand was thrust in his face. “How many fingers am I holding up?”

“Three? Abbadon, I’m fine. Just a little slip.”

It did little to erase the concern on the man’s face. “You’re already been hurt enough today! What about your headache?”

Abbadon was unceremoniously dragged off of his lap as Mantas gripped him by the scruff of the neck. “Give him some space, Abby, sheesh. You’re gonna suffocate him.”

“But I-”

“If he says he’s fine, then he’s fine.”

Jefferson looked at Abbadon. “Headache?”

“Well, ah, if it’s alright for me to speak,” Venom felt emerald eyes sweep over him briefly, “I did mention he fell outside of town. I wasn’t so worried at first, but he ran off out of nowhere while we were at the city flower show together. Apparently his head hurt and the noise was overwhelming.”

“Really? Well, in that case I suppose I understand why you brought him here in the first place. Usually one of you would call me ahead of time if you had an applicant.” There was a light scolding tone to his voice. “Did the problem go away when you came here?”

“Er...sort of.” A little reddish tinge lit up Abbadon’s face. “It seems like the pain was exacerbated by, um, _strenuous activity_ , and there was another episode while I was looking him over in my office. I gave him some painkillers, though it was a strong dose, and I fear it was a bit too numbing.”

“...I see.” The room went quiet, with nobody willing to speak over Jefferson. Venom tried to quell the incessant stress that didn’t seem to want to go away. It just kept swirling around, almost beginning to burn deep inside of him just from how much it dug into his thoughts.

“I suppose I can get a strength demonstration later. Tell me more about yourself, Venom.”

Jefferson was toying with him now. He just had to be. “I travel, mostly. I take different jobs depending on what I can find.”

“Such as?” The man leaned back against the wall. “Just so I can get a better idea of your work history.”

“Oh...a variety.” Despite his relative calmness, Venom was all but screaming on the inside as he tried to think. “Flowers, worked in a bakery for a bit of time, had a hustling job for a while-”

“Hustling?” Jesus asked.

Fuck. “P-pardon, I meant that in reference to billiards. I was a competitive billiards player.” He clarified. “I haven’t been selling drugs, or anything of the sort.”

He couldn’t read any of their faces. The silence was making the anxiety boil to a pitch, threatening to drown him. Jefferson’s dark eyes skimmed over him once more, taking in every detail.

His expression softened. “Well, Venom, I think we'd be happy to-”

_“SKREE!!”_

A discordant sound like nails on a chalkboard shrieked through the room, making everyone flinch and cover their ears. Venom felt the sensation in his chest move downwards. There was a pressure against his spine, and before he could react, the bandages around him ripped and slumped to the floor with a noisy tear.

_”You’re a naughty bunch of boys, aren’t you~?”_

A dozen sapphire tendrils cast shadows over Venom. He looked back, and found each tipped with a scythe-like blade.

“Y-you…” The noise made him turn back. Jefferson’s mellow face had hardened into a furious scowl. That he recognized perfectly, the spitting image of the person on the wanted board. In his hand, a short knife was clutched. 

“I knew it! You goddamn assassin bastards! I ain’t going down without a fight!”

A trio of blades lashed out. Mantas managed to throw up another couch as a shield, sending paper flying everywhere. Jesus and Abbadon vanished behind the cover, while Mantas himself formed a ball of ice in his hands.

Venom tried to turn to run. As soon as he did, he felt his knees go slack. An oozing sensation dribbled down his back, and he found himself trapped on the spidery legs once again- only now, they weren’t under his control at all.

Beatrice lashed out to block against a blast of ice magic fire in their direction. “You self-righteous shitbags!” Mantas shouted, ducking in low. “Why do you get to decide who lives or dies?!”

It was a valiant effort, but a hard swipe send Mantas stumbling and landing on his face. Jefferson leapt over a stack of boxes, brandishing his knife. It was embedded in one tendril, but instead of a pained scream, there was only a sweet laugh.

_”Oh, how adorable. You thought that would work?”_

Jefferson stepped back slowly, eyes going wide as Beatrice stood over him. The knife fell harmlessly from the creature’s skin, clinking on the floor. Venom could hear the wet ripples as Beatrice reformed and fused into jagged teeth and glowing eyes.

_”What’s that old saying? ‘Never bring a knife to a dragon fight?”_

It all went too fast. The royal-blue flame that almost singed his hair, the sight of Jefferson’s body and clothing going up in the blaze, his scream immediately spiking to a crescendo, only to cut out with a crackling gurgle.

“You BITCH!”

Beatrice weaved and ducked out of the way of another blast of ice. Mantas glared at the two of them hatefully, tears streaming down his face.

“How dare you kill the boss! You fucking bitch, I’LL KILL YOU!”

A few meager chunks of ice were thrown. Mantas went down far less theatrically, a duo of sickle-blades stabbed through his chest and his body tossed against the far wall with a wet slap.

_”Where aaare yoooou~?”_

Jesus sat huddled behind the tossed-over couch, hands clasped over his mouth. He looked up in cold terror as the mass of tentacles and pointy legs stood over him, only able to let out a weak, terrified cry as a hole was punched cleanly through his chest.

Venom was snapped from his stupor at the sensation of something striking him in the side, accompanied by an impossibly loud bang a half-second later. He looked down, and a long line had been singed through his suit sleeve, with something having cut a deep line along his arm that the painkillers kept him from feeling as it began to bleed.

Beatrice whirled around. Abbadon stood right by the door, holding a Black-Tech revolver. Based on his horrified expression and trembling hands, he hadn’t meant to just graze them. He hurled the weapon and took off running out the door.

 _”Oh no you don’t!!”_ The gun was effortlessly knocked away, and Beatrice took off after him. 

The low, heavy thus made the entire building tremble. The sound of sirens began to blare, and flashing lights painted the industrial stone red. The parasite smashed through boxes that had meant to distract them, but only served as meager obstacles. Abbadon wasn’t fast, but he managed to have enough of a head start and to disorient them enough to he able to find the front door and throw himself out of it.

The sun was still high in the sky as Beatrice tore the door off of its hinges and burst into the street. The sirens and loud clangs had managed to attract attention, but the lumbering creature only had its sights set on Abbadon. She leapt, pinning the man down with an array of sharp points to keep him immobile and face-up, but unharmed.

_“I found you~”_

Terrified green eyes stared up at the creature, then snapped over to the man it carried.

“V-Venom?” His voice was scarcely more than a whisper. “Venom, p-please, it isn’t what you think-”

Venom tried to find words. “Abbadon…”

“I-it was just a job, man, a guy’s gotta eat, I swear I- g- uck!”

With a deep, wet rip, a head rolled free from its neck, forever trapped in a terrified, slack-mouthed gaze as it rolled over the stone, and settled still.

A clamor of terrified screams echoed around him. It was too loud. It was too much. Venom wanted to cover his ears and scream, but one arm wouldn’t move, no matter how much he tried to force it. His eyes were fixed on the dead body. What seemed like an infinite amount of blood was gushing from the ragged stump and staining the cobble, filing his nose with the stench of death and iron. A spray of blood from the initial strike had spattered across his face and chest. It dripped down his skin, wetting the white fabric of his clothing and painting it ruby.

He wasn’t sure what came over him. His breaths felt shallow and tight, like there wasn’t enough air in the world to fill his lungs. The environment spiraled in colorful smears before his eyes. The creature he was attached to bucked back and screeched, thundering off down the street towards the city limits. Even when the stone was replaced with trees and dirt, everything was still too loud.

++++++

”We have a confirmed area on the target. There was a skirmish outside the Black Metal Shipping Company in Marseille, France. Visuals match the ones we were given.”

“A fight? Were there any casualties?”

“One was decapitated outside the building, ma’am. Three more victims were found inside, one burned almost beyond recognition.”

“And what of the target itself?”

Witnesses say that they saw it fleeing the scene almost immediately after. The information’s fuzzy so far, but it seems to have been heading west.”

“...interesting. Return to your men. I’ll let you know once a decision has been made if we require your services further.”

“Yes, lord Zato.”

“So...France?”

“Quite a trek to make in only a day on foot. And with how things seem now, finding the target will be more difficult than we expected.”

“Are you sending me?”

“Not yet, Millia. I don’t think it’s necessary.”

“Four people are dead!”

“Four _criminals_ are dead. Black Metal was just a front. Jefferson has been using it to smuggle drugs for who knows how long now. He was at the top of our list.”

“How long until civilian bodies are lining the street?! You’re just going to let this go?!”

“Our highest-profile target winds up dead almost immediately after...it isn’t a coincidence. From that, we can hypothesize a place to intercept based on the target nearest that one. It would only make sense.”

“Do you honestly think that will work?”

“...I hope it does.”

++++++

Deep in the thickets of the dense woods, Venom stifled a sob as he buried a single, purple, bloodstained rose. 


	6. Altercation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, really sorry for taking so long with this. I always mean to get back to this one but before I know it it's been months. I hope this at least partly makes up for it.
> 
> Many thanks to Nana for helping me with the plot!

_“Venom, dearest, we have to go.”_

The young man sat perched stiffly on his knees, gripping bunched fistfuls of his pants with trembling hands. His hair hung over his face to hide his eyes, but he still sniffled and trembled with every breath.

A cool hand gently placed itself on his shoulder. _”It’s been almost an hour. We need to start moving, otherwise the police may find us.”_

He pulled away from her touch. “Don’t care.”

_”What?”_

“I said I _don’t care_.”

Beatrice sighed. _”I understand you’re upset, but you’re being unreasonable. If the police find us, we’ll never be able to finish-”_

“I. Don’t. Care!” Venom snapped back, swinging an arm at her. “I don’t care! I don’t want to do this anymore! This wasn’t supposed to happen!”

_”What are you talking about? You accomplished exactly what you came here for. Wasn’t it a success?”_

“A _success?_ ” The man growled back. “My first partner, my first _friend_ \- and you cut his head off!!”

_”Me?”_ Beatrice sounded completely offended. _”Are you saying that this was entirely my doing?”_

“You’re the one who killed him!”

_”Now you listen here.”_ Her voice became sharp and icy, immediately getting her host’s attention. _”You’re being unfair. My only directive is to keep my host protected. Maybe I was a tad excessive, but there was a clear and present danger, and I needed to ensure the danger was dealt with. That is my purpose. I intervene when there is danger, and I ensure my master’s safety.”_

Venom didn’t want to admit it, but she wasn't wrong. “But Abbadon was running away, did you still have to-”

_”He ran away after he_ shot _you.”_ She slumped a little, curling her head against his shoulder. _“Venom, with all due respect, I think you’re only defending him because he showed a romantic interest in you. And despite the allure, does that really make him any less guilty just for that fact?”_

He was silent, gaze tipping to stare out at the sea of trees in front of them. He couldn’t think of any proper counter to that. Beatrice was right.

_”You don’t have to say anything. But please, Venom. Try to understand. I’m just trying to keep you safe.”_

“...Ok.”

_”Hmm?”_

“You’re right. Let’s just go.”

He could feel Beatrice calming down. She settled back to her place on his shoulder. _”As you wish, master. Where are we headed next?_ ”

The sun was just barely beginning its descent. There was more than enough sunlight to read as Venom pulled the list out again. Sucking in a breath, he scratched out Jefferson’s name off of the list.

“Next listed, Oasis Smith. Presumably a pseudonym. Last spotted between Antibes and Nice, it’s presumed her base is somewhere within that radius. If I remember correctly, she’s a socialite.”

_”A socialite? Seems odd for her to be so high on the list.”_

“Most of her wealth came from weapons smuggling, based on Guild sources. Has a web spread all across- n-nhh- !”

_”Venom?”_

“Hhh….ah…” He slumped over. His hand flew to his bleeding arm. Left unattended, it had painted almost the entire sleeve red. It seemed the painkillers were finally beginning to wear off.

_”Oh…_ With a reassuring coo, Beatrice nuzzled against Venom’s cheek. She wrapped a tendril over the wound, leaving a little makeshift patch. _”I can’t stitch your skin back together, unfortunately”_ She brushed the forming tears from his eyes. _”But this will hold everything in. We will need to find someone to sew it up.”_

“P-please-” The assassin whimpered, voice cracking. “Can you make it hurt less?”

It felt pathetic to ask, and he knew it. He was assassin, pain was supposed to be second nature. Maybe it was just his frayed nerves making it hurt more, but this was one of the worst things he had ever felt, and he was stuck in the woods with almost no supplies.

_”I’m afraid not, dearest. You’ll just have to bear it for now.”_

Venom choked down a sob, rubbing his eyes again with gloved fingers. He tried not to move his injured arm much as he folded the bounty list up and tucked it away. Even with his best efforts, the movement of trying to get to his feet jostled the rest of his body. Pulses of pain shot up and down his arm and side, making his knees tremble. He could feel them collapse underneath, but before he could hit the ground, he could feel the familiar oozing and found himself being held up again.

_”Allow me.”_ Beatrice said as the familiar legs unfolded. _”You’ve been very busy. There’s no need to overwork yourself.”_

He wanted to ask her why she hadn’t done that before he tried getting up in the first place, but he felt too sore and burnt out to try and get into another argument. Venom merely let himself be carried. If given the choice, he would have much rather let himself try to forget everything that had happened today.

_”I’ll head toward Antibes, does that sound alright?”_

“Mmhm.” He didn’t want to chat. He didn’t want to think. He just wanted to rest.

Beatrice started trotting briskly, easily pruning aside errant branches to keep them from slapping either of them as they passed. Venom let her do as she wished for several moments, at least until he realized that he hadn’t told her where to go.

_”Oh, I am very good with directions!”_ She said, making him almost jump back out of sudden shock. _”Whoopsies, my bad...ah, doing alright, Venom?”_

He wouldn’t admit that the jolt had agitated his arm again. He didn’t want to show weakness. “I’m fine.”

_”Excellent. Anyways, that was mostly a joke. I believe our connection has started growing stronger! I’m getting more and more access to your thoughts, and you have a mental map! I know just where I’m going though you! Isn’t that exciting?”_

“‘Exciting’ was not the word he would have picked. He didn’t like the thought of someone, Beast or not, picking through his head. It reminded him of the Guild’s weekly checks, when all the trainees in the camp would be shoved in the end of their sleeping tents. The overseers would all but tear everything apart, dumping out every bucket and basket in search of contraband. Nobody ever knew what happened if you got caught. They were all too scared to find out.

He pinched his eyes shut. No. No, he was being selfish. He’d wanted this, hadn’t he? It was unreasonable to complain. Zato didn’t complain. Millia didn’t complain. Why was he being so pathetic? This was completely different. How could he prove himself if he kept getting all emotional like a little kid?

Venom tried to force himself to relax, slumping against the slick surface supporting him. He was probably just tired. Tired and stressed out. It had been one hell of a day.

The sun had all but vanished from the horizon, and the sky was turning indigo. If he squinted, he could make out an array of stars. They’d gone a good deal into the woods, so the only thing making it harder to spot the lights were the tree branches overhead.

_”The stars are very pretty tonight, aren’t they?_ ” Beatrice hummed, trotting along calmly. _”I didn’t get a good look last night. I’ve never seen them before…_ ”

“They’re very nice to look at, I agree.” Moving slowly and carefully, he reached up to the sky and traced out a pattern. “That’s Ursa Major. The Big Dipper is in its tail.”

_”Ursa? A bear? How curious.”_

“Some constellations are animals. Some are people, like that one.” He made a little zigzag in the air. “Cassiopeia.”

_”Fascinating!”_

“Some constellations aren’t animals or people. I know a few are objects. I think that’s Libra, up there. The scales of justice.”

He felt a half-second of hesitation somewhere in the back of his mind. _”That’s odd. Of all things, why scales?”_

“I don’t know.” Venom replied. “I don’t know too much about astrology. I just know a few common ones. And I know Libra, because it’s the sign I was born under.”

_”Oh.”_ Beatrice sounded no less confused. _”How do you know that?”_

“My birthday, or my sign?” He almost managed a half-chuckle. “I don’t know how I remembered my birthday. I recall a time back when I was younger, when Lord Zato started overseeing my training. I knew it was almost his birthday, and he mentioned the topic offhandedly.” A faint warmth rose in his cheeks. “It was nice. I didn’t know much about the subject, but Lord Zato said-”

_”That the scales of justice suited someone like you.”_

The warmth went cold. “How do you- “

_“I could feel it. In your thoughts.”_ The Beast sounded almost wistful. _”Your admiration for his is most beautiful.”_

He wasn’t sure how to respond. If someone had asked him a day ago, he would have agreed wholeheartedly, unabashedly declaring his absolute devotion. After all that had happened now…

Abbadon…

_”Master? Did I say something wrong?”_

“No.” He replied, a little sharper than intended. “I’m fine. Just thinking.”

_”Alright then, I understand”_ Venom couldn’t tell if she was being facetious. Beatrice kept the same calm, placid politeness to her voice. _”Perhaps this may be an odd question, but what do you think my star-sign is?”_

“Hmm...well, when is your birthday?”

_”I don’t recall the date of my creation...Truthfully, I’d consider the day I bonded with you to be my true date of birth.”_

“Alright, then.” He thought for a moment. “I believe that’s...Taurus?”

_”Taurus, how fascinating!”_ He felt a spark of pleasantness nudging into his consciousness. _”Arranging flowers and astrology...humans have such fascinating pastimes!”_

Their walk turned quiet once more. Venom hoped that it would stay that way.

It was easier to try and think ahead rather than look back. It was what he’d always tried to do. If he could lose himself to work, then he wouldn’t think. He wouldn’t think about those warm, gentle hands, the scent of chamomile tea, the look of betrayal in those eyes a moment before he-

_”Venom?”_

_”What?”_

The sharp, hissing tone seemed to make everything go quiet. The assassin felt a knot of shame take root in him. “I-I’m sorry, Beatrice, is something wrong?”

_”Well, I was just thinking…”_ There was an odd tone to her voice, but he couldn’t put it into words. _”Our relationship is very...unique, yes?”_

“I...suppose?” Venom replied, already lost. “A parasite-host relationship like this is rather rare, probably only comparable to other Forbidden Beasts-”

_”Oh, ah,”_ Beatrice cut him off. _”I don’t like that. Don’t say that.”_

“Pardon?”

_”’Parasite.’ Such an icky word. It makes me feel...not very good.”_

“Oh.” Though the thought had never really occurred to him, Venom realized that it did seem somewhat derisive. “I’m sorry, is there some other wording you’d prefer I use?”

_”Hmm…”_ The creature went quiet, still walking all the while. _”How about...mother?”_

The legs skidded to an abrupt halt.

“What...I-I don’t understand.” The assassin’s voice was brittle, expression unreadable behind his bangs.

Beatrice tilted her little head. _”I don’t think it’s improper, is it? I fill a similar role. I care for you. I look after your well-being. I even prepare your food. Doesn’t that make me your mother of sorts?”_

Venom went stiff. It was a little movement, yet it made him appear for more foreboding than he had just a moment before.

_”Venom?”_ The Beast drifted closer, extending a tentacle to brush her host’s hair away. _”Why did you make us stop? Is something-”_

“Shut up!!”

She flinched back. _”What?”_

“‘Mother’...you want me to call you ‘mother...’ He tilted his head back, lips twitching into a borderline-manic smile as his wide eyes stared at the stars. “What gives you the right?”

Beatrice was quiet. Venom turned to her, still keeping that disturbing expression. “What have you done for me?? I’m expected to see you as my parent? After you killed my only friend?”

Her voice went cold. _”Venom, we discussed this. I did what I had to-”_

“ _And_ you broke my spine! I’m never going to be able to walk on my own again! I’ve got your voice always in the back of my head, invading my space when I don’t want you to! ” Venom wasn’t sure why he was suddenly so angry, but he couldn’t stop himself. For that moment, he just hated everything. “You don’t _get_ to call yourself my mother, because in my opinion, you’ve been hardly anything more than a hindrance at best! I might not be able to remember my real mom, but even then I know she had to be drastically better than you! Don't you _dare_ try to compare yourself to that!!”

They both were quiet, stone-still in between trees. The only sounds were Venom’s ragged breathing and the distant wind. He tried to keep his thoughts drenched in anger, so he wouldn’t have to think about what he had just done.

After what felt like an eternity, Beatrice spoke again, voice flat. _”Well, if that’s how you feel.”_

He thought he felt the legs starting to move again, but the assassin felt his heart skip a beat when he suddenly found himself slumping towards the ground. Wet stickiness dragged up his back, and he only realized just what was happening after the legs had melted and were receding back into him.

“B-Beatrice?” He stuttered in confusion. “What are you-”

Before he knew it, Venom found himself perched on the ground, unsteady and numb legs collapsing and mashing his face against the dirt before he could stop himself from falling.

He tried to push himself up, but a searing pain lanced up one arm that made him roll onto his back and grasp it. The ride had been just comfortable enough to make him forget about his arm. It seemed that the one remaining bit of slime remained looped around the wound and kept it dammed, but it still hurt when he tried to move.

“Beatrice?” He asked. Then, louder, “Beatrice?”

No response came. He forced himself back onto his stomach, biting back a gasp of pain, to see if she would come out.

“Beatrice?!”

Even his thoughts had gone silent. There was no little nagging wisp of anger that he could attribute to her. He felt like that should have brought on some sort of relief. And yet, a pit of panic was starting to gnaw at his insides.

“I-it’s okay, I’m gonna…” Venom tried to reassure himself. He tried twisting to look over his shoulder, but found nothing. “Beatrice? Beatrice, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to- hello?”

Still nothing. He was hardly aware of how his fingers were digging into the grass. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings. I-I’m stuck, can you please come out?”

He was too concerned to even care about how his voice cracked. A twig cracked somewhere in the distance, and his head snapped towards the sound. The logical part of him recognized that he’d been in worse scenarios, but fear was drowning out the sensible thoughts and made him far too aware that he was alone, paralyzed from the waist down, one arm injured, defenseless aside from whatever summons he could form with his dwindling stamina, stuck in the middle of the woods.

Despite his fear, and the desire to curl up in a little ball, Venom forced himself to start crawling. Even with a compromised arm, he still had enough control to shimmy his hips up and drag himself forward. It was awkward, it was uncomfortable, and just getting all of his body to properly synchronize was despairingly difficult, but it was the only way Venom could force himself to move.

He tried his best not to focus on the forest around him as he half-dragged himself. The scent of dirt was hard to ignore from how his face kept grinding against the ground and had it mix with his hair and skin. Still, he tried to pretend it was a training exercise. Assassins did need to be prepared for anything. If it was an exercise, he could pretend he was less scared.

The hoot of every owl and the wind rustling the leaves made his muscles lock up in panic. It was just all too much. His stomach growled for something more than the tea and venison that he had eaten for breakfast, even moreso now that he was wounded. His clothes were getting dirtier and dirtier without anything else to change into, and he knew that getting out of the forest was the only way he could be sure that he wouldn’t be killed in the middle of the night by some animal while he was alone, helpless, and bleeding.

The longer he tried to move, the more his body started protesting. Even trying to keep his arm stiff and unmoving, lurching over and over again made it throb incessantly. Venom wished that the bandages around his waist hadn’t been torn away earlier. The force of trying to drag himself over exposed roots and debris had not been kind to his skin. Every heaving slide was accompanied by a wince as it scraped away at him. He could only imagine that sort of sight that awaited him if he rolled over. He desperately hoped that he wasn’t bleeding.

The only part of him that didn’t hurt were his numb legs. The scratched-raw skin on his stomach throbbed, his bad arm pulsed with pain every time he tried to move. Even his good arm ached and cramped from all the effort he was making just to try and keep going. He had been exhausted even before he had started. 

“B-Beatrice-” He cried weakly, trying to get her to listen. He was desperate now, tears pricking his eyes. He didn’t want to cry, but it was too hard not to. What else did he have to do to get her attention? What more could he do?

Venom went to extend his arm again, but the movement sent an even harsher throb of pain across his abdomen. Without thinking, he rolled onto his side, wrapping an arm around himself. 

His fingers dipped into something warm and wet.

“Oh…” It was hard to see in the low light, but it wasn’t hard to guess what he was looking at. A large wet stain ran down his front, mixed with shreds of grass and dirt. “O-oh no-”

A sudden burst of adrenaline made him scrabble at the grass, wriggling and squirming in a desperate attempt to make it further. He saw no end to the trees, but still he moved, quietly pleading that something would show up and save him, that the end was just around the corner, that he just had to get a little bit further-

With a weak whimper, Venom’s exhausted, hungry, injured body went limp, vision swirling into darkness.


	7. Something Entirely New

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AKA 'The Gratuitous Rabbit Chapter.' Sorry for the wait!

A slender figure sat on a rooftop, staring out into the silent camp below. A small number of graveyard-shift workers still milled about, keeping an eye out for trespassers and troublemakers, blissfully unaware of the person hiding just a few feet above them.

From overhead, a pair of black, leathery wings unfurled against the night sky. Gliding noiselessly, their owner took an interest in the mysterious woman, and carefully alighted on the roof beside her.

At the sound of his footsteps, she turned her head quickly, but her expression turned placid when she recognized the intruder.

“I wasn’t expecting you to come.”

“Oh?” A characteristic pipe was gripped tightly within sharp, shining teeth. “Why not?”

She offered no response, merely turning back and staring out at the dusk. The figure by her side made no move to sit down beside her, but did not seem to have any interest in leaving.

“Something is bothering you, Millia. I can tell.” His expression turned amused. “Experiencing relationship difficulties?”

For a brief moment, her expression hardened. “Zato has been acting...strange.”

He stroked his beard pensively. “Strange? How so?”

“It’s hard to say.” Millia pinched her eyes shut, though the pattern of stars lingered in her mind. “Ever since the runaway...no, I want to say ever since the two of us obtained our Beasts. It just feels like there’s less of him there. He’s always been focused on the Guild, but...now it feels like that’s all there is to him. We’ve hardly talked since then, aside from business matters.”

“Are you sure the two of you aren’t just adjusting? It’s been such a scant amount of time since the two of you were given the forbidden magic. It’s difficult to adapt to, especially with the losses it brings.”

“No. That isn’t it.” She shook her head. “Something’s wrong. I can feel it. I don’t know what it is, but something is wrong.”

“Forbidden Beasts are rather difficult sometimes...it’s just their nature.” The man smirked. “After all, if they were easy, do you think they would be hidden away?”

Black wings extended once more, flexing with a few practice flaps. “I wish you the best, Millia.”

Without another word, he took off into the darkness, quickly becoming nothing more than another smudge of black in the sky.

++++++

Venom felt warm, and nothing hurt.

Wait. 

Why did nothing hurt?

Was he dead? It wasn’t an impossibility, but…

Before any other thoughts could cross his lethargic mind, something small and wet nudged his cheek.

“GAH!!”

He wasn’t usually one to scream. Of all things, he wouldn’t have expected that. Pain was one thing, but that?

Without even a second wasted, Venom shoved himself backwards, feeling something hard and flat hit him from behind. The impact made his eyes fly open, which sent his arms up to block out the sudden light.

Hold on, why didn’t _that_ hurt??

Blinking rapidly to clear his vision, he tried to focus on his injured arm. He gave it a tentative flex, instinctively bracing himself just in case the first time had been a fluke. As it bent, he felt nothing, aside from the movement of his own body, and fabric sliding against his skin.. 

A swathe of something sandy-colored appeared in front of him, making Venom just back again and smack his head against whatever was behind him again. He would have been irritated, if he wasn’t so utterly baffled.

Why exactly was there a rabbit on his lap?

The furry creature seemed to put far less interest in what it was sitting on, and went to work cleaning itself. It seemed rather large for a rabbit- though Venom didn’t have much experience with the things. Nonetheless, it seemed sensible to see one, rabbits did tend to live in forests…

_Whose house was this??_

All of this was already giving him a headache. Why was he in a house, and whose was it? The decor only offered so much to go off of, with how little there was. All of it was subdued but cheery, perhaps a bit folksy, if the rocking chair at his bedside was anything to go by. At least it explained what he had kept bumping into, though it seemed the headboard was no worse for wear.

The same, it seemed, could be said for him. Venom gave himself a good look-over while the strange rabbit was busy grooming. Whatever he was wearing, it certainly didn’t belong to him, either. The garment covering his upper half was simple and soft, and probably very cozy to sleep in. When he pulled his shirt up, trying not to agitate the animal in the process, he found himself once again wrapped in bandages, this time much more thoroughly. Though it didn’t hurt, he found his arm in a similar state, wrapped up and half-hidden underneath the short sleeve.

“What on earth…?”

As if he needed another source of stress, he was able to catch the sound of footsteps about two seconds before the room’s door slammed open.

“Astarte, is everything okay?! I heard something crash-”

He didn’t realize he’d thrown his hands up in defense until his vision went dark. The assassin tried to summon a few billiard balls instinctively, but realized that he still felt too drained to do the job proper.

The foreign voice immediately softened. “Ah- oh my goodness, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to frighten you…”

Hesitantly, he lowered his arms back down. He was still very suspicious, but he knew that he wouldn’t be able to put up a good fight if he tried.

The stranger approached his bed, moving slowly like she was afraid of scaring him again. All the while, the rabbit in his lap remained perfectly calm, having finished grooming and content to just watch the goings-on.

“I understand this is a bit strange.” She said, sitting down lightly in the rocking chair. “How are you feeling? Does anything hurt?”

He was taken rather off-guard by her gentle tone. It made him too confused for hostility or anger. “F-fine.” He replied, a bit hoarse. “I’m fine.”

“You sound a little dried out, perhaps you could use a drink.” She reached out to place a hand over his forehead, brushing aside his bangs. “Hmm. You don’t feel warm, though, and your wounds have been healing up nicely. That’s good.”

“You did this?” Venom wasn’t sure why he was so surprised, but he was.

The woman smiled at him. Her skin was a half-shade lighter than his, but marked with innumerable pitch-black freckles. Something about it reminded him of a star-filled sky. “My wife did. I’ve been keeping an eye on you, though- seems I wasn’t doing a very good job, hehe!”

The prospect of being watched in his sleep unnerved him slightly. No matter who it was. He needed to fight down the little spark of unease to keep it from showing.

“Ah, if I may ask, how long was I out?”

“Two days, give or take a bit. It’s almost noon. But I hope Astarte was keeping you company?”

“Astarte?” Venom tilted his head. He found his vision drifting to the rabbit on his lap.

“Yep! One of our prize Does. She’s a cuddler. Don’t feel bad about shooing her off if you need to get up, she’s kind of a brat. I figure you’re probably ready for a good hearty meal to make up for the ones you’ve missed?”

He immediately shrank. “You don’t have to-”

“Oh, sweetie, it really is no trouble! Kittie loves cooking for people. Even if it isn’t much, I really think you should eat something.”

It seemed like there was no point in fighting- and as embarrassing as it was to admit it, he was rather hungry. 

Venom reached over to nudge the rabbit slightly. She seemed just as uninterested. He tapped her on the side a few times.

The woman laughed. She stood up, easily scooping the animal into her arms before depositing it on the floor. “Gotta be a little more firm, kiddo. She really is stubborn. But really warm on winter nights!”

With that obstacle out of the way, he tossed the blankets off and managed to swing his legs over the edge of the bed. As soon as he did, he felt a rising sense of dread. His legs. Were they still useless? How was he going to get around? Would he be able to make up an excuse to not get up?

“Need a hand?” She extended one out, completely unaware of the million thoughts currently running through his head.

Before he could deny it, he reached out. He had no time to chastise himself for his own stupidity, instead focusing on stiffening every muscle in an attempt to properly stand. He quietly willed something to go right, at least if by accident. His nerves felt fuzzy, and all he could manage was willpower mixed with a few silent prayers.

“There we are! Feeling alright?”

Venom wanted to be shocked. He had control again? Was he finally starting to gain some proper control of his Beast? 

He let out a relieved breath, nearly stumbling from lightheadedness until the hand holding his gripped on. “Steady, now! But you’re looking good. Need a little more help?”

“I’ll be fine.” He replied, pulling himself free without even thinking about the question he was asked. He was supposed to be highly trained. He could walk on his own.

She looked a bit uncertain, but let him be. “Just follow me, then. House isn’t too big, it’s just down the hall.”

He followed behind her closely. Even if the house _was_ big, he would have been able to find the living space from the scent and sound of something sizzling. It was natural that would be where the food was. 

What he wasn’t prepared for, though, was a living room full of more rabbits. Each and every one of them large and relaxed, dozing or grooming themselves with complete nonchalance.

“Honey!” His companion called, unfazed by all the animals lingering on the floor and furniture. “He’s up! Mind whipping up some food for our guest?”

From the kitchen’s doorway, a paler but equally-freckled face popped out, immediately bursting into a grin upon seeing the two of them. “Ah, good to see ya up! Was starting to worry. Take a seat! Breakfast’s almost ready!”

“Breakfast?” Venom asked, finding a seat at the table. “Didn’t you say it was almost noon?”

“That’s just how Kittie does things.” His companion took a seat across from him, shrugging a little. “No matter what time we wake up, it’s breakfast time. We usually get up rather early for work anyways, this is just an odd day.”

There was a window by the table, offering an excellent view of the yard outside. There was a fence lining it somewhere in the distance, but most of the space in between was filled with vegetable patches and a large barn. A few more rabbits were trotting around the grass or dozing in the sunlight.

“This is...a farm?”

She nodded brightly. “Yep! Best strawberries in Vale! We grow all our own fruits and veggies!”

A white-furred bunny trotted up to his chair, nose twitching. “What are the rabbits for?”

“Well…” He noticed the woman was blushing. “We were _supposed_ to be raising them for meat, but we got too attached. Now they’re mostly just for companionship. Does wonders for the heating bill!”

“But they eat so much, and ya keep spoiling the things!” The other woman bustled out of the kitchen, toting a large plate and a pair of mugs. The plate was dropped in the middle of the table, and a mug was passed to her partner.

“I can’t help it, dear, how can I say no?”

“‘No.’ See? Easy!”

Venom wasn’t sure what to make of any of this. What was he supposed to be doing? Was there something he was supposed to be saying?

The first woman perked up suddenly. “Oh! I just realized that I never introduced myself. I’m Jale.”

“And I’m Kittie! Don’t be shy about helpin’ yourself, I made extra!”

The big plate was stacked high with what looked like crepes and brioche, topped with whipped cream and strawberries. Was this really breakfast? It looked like dessert.

Jale turned to her partner, eyebrow quirked. “You made crepes? I though for sure you’d go for pancakes.”

“Didn’t have enough flour. Gonna have to buy more from Charlie at the market.” Kittie shook her head, and turned to Venom. “Hope ya stick around to try ‘em! They’re my specialty!”

He wasn’t sure how to respond. “Thank you for treating my wounds.” That seemed like a good place to start. “And for the food.”

“Aww, it’s no trouble at all, kiddo!” Kittie beamed.

“We’re just glad to see you’re alright.” Jale nodded in agreement. “We were very worried when we found you outside town. How on earth did you wind up there?”

The question caught him off-guard. “Traveling.” He replied, deeming it the most plausible and least questionable answer. If it was a farm village, he theorized, they probably had travelers come through relatively often. “I think I got attacked by a Gear. Not sure, though, it was hard to make out in the dark.”

Her expression fell. “Oh, dear, that’s horrible. The woods around here tend to be dangerous if you aren’t careful. Even on the beaten paths, you have to keep an eye out for Gears and bandits.”

“Seems like there’s always something bad going on around the country.” Kittie walked back towards the kitchen, returning with an equally-large plate piled with eggs, bacon, and jam jars, alongside forks and plates for the three of them. “Heard somethin’ about a Megadeth attack up by Rennes just last week. I know they’ve got that ‘Guardian Angel’ boy handling the front, but I don’t like them having a kid on the front lines like that, no matter how good he is.”

“Mmm. I know the neighbors were talking about some sort of incident in Marseille.” Jale took a plate, and began scooping a crepe onto it. “A warehouse accident, I think? I’m not too sure on all the details. I hope everyone made it out okay…”

“Enough of the dark stuff, hon, I think we’re scaring him.” Kittie gave her a little bump in the shoulder.

“Huh?” Seeing how stiff Venom looked, she dropped it immediately. “I’m sorry, this isn’t good breakfast talk. Go ahead and eat! I’ve made you wait far too long.”

There wasn’t a good way to explain to them why it made him uncomfortable, so he was glad that he didn’t have to make up another lie. Instead, he was able to focus on the food. After a bit of deliberation, he eased a bit of brioche off of the end of the stack, with just a bit of cream and fruit on it.

“This is… _delicious._ ” Bread wasn’t totally unallowed growing up, but he was used to it being bland and dry, if not outright stale. He never knew bread could taste so fluffy and sweet. The strawberries matched it well, juicy and fresh but not too saccharine. He was so surprised that he didn’t even noticed he’d smeared cream on his cheek.

“Hehe! He likes it, honey!” Jale put a hand over her mouth.

Kittie was practically glowing with pride, swiping a chunk of her own. “Thanks! I was really happy with how the last loaf turned out. Good to know someone likes it!”

“ _I_ liked it, didn’t I?”

The woman scoffed, though her expression was not at all serious. “Please. I know you, Jale. We been married eight years, you’d tell me my cooking was good if I made it out of dirt.”

The woman blushed, averting her eyes, only to have them fall on him. “You’ve got some whipped cream on your face.”

Kittie handed him a napkin to clean himself with. “What’s your name? Don’t think you said.”

He thought to himself. He hadn’t attempted a fake name last time, but he hadn’t exactly been speaking to everyone in town. Still, maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to be so honest. He still knew so little about these two and their motivations-

“Venom.”

Why had he done that without thinking?! Was he _trying_ to get himself into trouble?

Neither of them seemed to regard it with anything but nonchalance. “It’s nice to meet you, Venom.” Jale took another bite of crepe. She glanced down at something below the table. “You’re not getting any of my breakfast, you piggy!”

He didn’t know what he had been expecting. Another rabbit had hopped up to her legs, butting against the woman’s thigh in an attempt to get her attention.

“Don’t you go feeding them too, now!” Kittie pointed a fork at him accusingly, before stabbing some bacon. “Bad enough already with how Jale spoils ‘em.”

Thankfully, neither of them seemed to have anything else to say after that. Venom was content to nibble on the brioche slowly, trying to make it last as long as possible. The longer he sat there, the more the rabbits seemed to take an interest in him. A few more came closer, sniffing him.

Kittie was the first to start talking again. He was getting the impression that she was the chatty one. “Not sure how you’re feelin,’ but you’re free to take the guest bed as long as you’d like. Dunno if you’re in a rush to get going to wherever you’re headed, but I’d definitely say another day or two of laying low, minimum. Don’t wanna open up that nasty gash on your arm again.”

It was a reasonable argument. Still, he didn’t want to get off-track. He couldn’t do that again…

Jale seemed to pick up on his tenseness. “Honey, mind grabbing some juice? I forgot I was going to get him something to drink.”

“Eh? Aw, darn, how did I forget! Be right back!”

As soon as she was gone, Jale gave him a sympathetic look. “Is everything alright, Venom? You seem a bit stressed. Are you tired? Would you like to rest a little bit more?”

“I’m fine, thank you.” His response came out far less convincing than he would have liked. “I suppose I’m a bit disoriented, is all.”

“I understand completely.” Despite his instincts, he tried not to immediately pull away as she gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. “Let me know if you need some more space, okay? You’re more than welcome to go lie down or get some fresh air outside. Don’t feel like you need to stick around here.” Jale chuckled. “And I know kids your age don’t tend to like spending time with an old hag like me. As long as you’re here, you’re free to treat our home as your own. Don’t hesitate to make yourself comfortable.”

He wasn’t sure how to respond. He wasn’t used to this kindness. Jale just seemed to trust him immediately, no caveats or worries that he was going to start causing trouble. Why did she trust him? Shouldn’t she be more worried about a stranger?

“Drink up!” Kittie swept back into the dining room, hoisting a glass of reddish juice. “Cherry-apple, my newest recipe!” She seemed so happy about it, Venom felt a bit guilty at shaking his head.

“I’m...not much of a juice person. A bit too rich for me.” The Guild didn’t tend to allow sweet drinks. It was unhealthy, and didn’t fit into their strict diet regimen. Then again, he supposed he could say that about most of the food he had just been given.

Kittie looked a bit crestfallen, but immediately hurried off with the glass. “No worries! It ain’t for everyone. Tea better, instead?”

“Yes, that sounds nice.”

“We’d be more than happy to soup you up with some supplies before you head out.” Jale picked up the conversation again. “The weekly market is tomorrow, so we can make sure to pick up some extra food for you to take. You’re also plenty welcome to come along for that, too! Vale’s full of nice people, and we’re always happy to introduce outsiders to our dishes!”

“That might be good.” Venom was still trying to process everything. He kept offering noncommital answers, hoping that it would leave him with the option to duck out if he had to. He felt bad behaving so aversively to these nice people, but he was supposed to be an assassin, not a sightseer.

“You don’t have to decide right away, either. You’re free to think about it for a bit. Like I said, things are probably more than a little confusing for you, so it’s alright if you’d just like some time to think and clear your head.”

Any further conversation was interrupted by Kittie, who had replaced the juice with a saucer.

“Here you go, Venom! Tea’s done!” A steaming-hot cup was placed in front of him.

He turned to look up at her. “Thank you, I-”

As soon as the smell hit his nose, he felt his body go tense. It was entirely instinctive, and he didn’t realize just why until he was able to figure out why it felt so familiar.

“I grabbed some chamomile from the cupboard. It’s Jale’s favorite. Need any sugar or anything to go with it?”

Venom felt paralyzed. His eyes were frozen on the cup in front of him, innocently wafting more steam and filling his nose with its scent.

In his mind’s eye, the image of blood gushing uncontrollably and drenching him was uncomfortably vivid. He could recall frightened eyes, but only for a moment. After that, there was nothing but a jagged stump, with so much flowing red that he felt like he was going to drown in it.

No. He wasn’t going to lose his composure. It was just tea. He didn’t need to overreact. He was fine. Everything was just fine.

He barely had enough time to push away from the table and turn his head before his stomach decided to empty itself on the floor. Several rabbits skittered away in terror at the sudden noise, finding places to shove themselves under the cabinet and the couch.

“Venom?!” Jale all but flew to his side, placing a hand on his back. “Sweetie, are you okay? What’s wrong?”

No words could make it out of his mouth. His body ached, with the acid burning his throat and stinging his nose. He coughed up a mouthful of saliva and acid, too disoriented to care much about the mess he was making.

“Oh, shh-shh-shh, c’mere-” Venom found himself being coaxed to his feet and led back towards the hall. They took a sharp turn before they could reach the bedroom, instead taking him into the bathroom. Jale helped him down to his knees and immediately pulled his hair back.

He was going to offer some objection, but the images flashed through his mind again, and he found himself slumping forward, trying to throw up something that wasn’t there. Venom wanted to admonish himself for being so pathetic, but his thoughts were too jumbled and stuck in panic mode to manage that.

Though the mind-fog, he noticed the sensation of a hand gently pressing against his back. It was the only thing he could try and ground himself with, the only way he could bring himself to focus on something. It moved up and down the ridge of his spine, slowly and repetitively. 

“Easy, easy…” Jale’s voice murmured soothingly by his ear. “Deep breaths. Are you going to be sick again?”

The sensation of his heart pounding in his ears was unpleasantly familiar. Venom tried to focus on Jale’s soft reassurances, letting his ragged breathing even out while the bubbling nausea started to fade.

“Are you alright, Venom? Does anything hurt?”

Slowly, he nodded. Everything still tasted like acid, and his ribs ached. “Water, please?”

While Jale got up and retrieved a glass, he noticed Astarte plodding into the bathroom. Venom sat back on the floor. Without any hesitation, she wandered towards him, sniffing his arm curiously. 

He wasn’t sure how to react when she started climbing up on his lap. A gentle nudge failed to shoo her away, even a light smack.

“Er, can you please get off?” His voice was unexpectedly sticky and gravelly. The pressure on him wasn’t painful- if anything, it actually felt quite nice- but he wasn’t sure how to react to have a living, breathing creature of this size casually crawling all over him.

“Sorry ‘bout the wait.” Venom heard Kittie as she entered. “Jale got stuck trying to find the floor cleaner.”

“It’s alright.” He watched her fill the glass with the sink tap, and started drinking as soon as it was handed to him.

“That help at all? I can get ya-” She caught sight of the rabbit that was currently sitting on him. “Astarte! No!” Kittie berated. “Don’t sit on the nice boy like that! Where are your manners?”

The rabbit ignored her completely, flopping onto Venom’s lap to expose her belly.

The woman sighed. “Sorry, she’s needy.”

“I’ve never met a rabbit like this…” Venom lifted a hand to pet her. “May I…?”

“Hmm? Oh, yeah, by all means. She loves getting scritches. Jale spoils her silly. I doubt she’ll even think of getting off of you until you give her some attention.”

“Ah…” Astarte was completely calm as he let his fingers sink into her fur. Just touching her brought him a strange sense of calm. Her tawny coat was soft and silky, from the tips of her ears to her fluffy tail.

After a minute or so of pets, the rabbit casually stood up and wandered off again.

“What an odd creature…”

Kittie shook her head. “Don’t take it personal. She comes and goes as she pleases. She’s, uh...what am I lookin’ fer...”

“Capricious?”

“That’s a five-dollar word, but yeah. I raised the damn thing, and I still dunno what she’s thinking most of the time. Anyway, how you feeling?”

Venom wasn’t sure how to respond. “Fine. A bit drained.”

“Aww, and just when we got you awake!” Kittie chuckled to herself. “Joking, joking. Let’s get you back to bed. Maybe you need more sleep.”

She extended her arms out towards him. Venom had been expecting that she’d help him to his feet. Instead, he bit down a panicked screech as the world began moving. When it finally slowed, he realized that Kittie was carrying him in her arms, as though he weighed absolutely nothing.

“You okay, kiddo?” She looked at him with innocent curiosity, like all this was completely normal for her. “Gonna get sick again?”

“N-no, I-” It was strangely hard to speak. “Can you please put me down?”

“Eh? Oh, yeah, sure.” With complete nonchalance, she let him back down on his feet. Still, Kittie kept a hand on his shoulder. 

After the theatrics, Venom was silent as he let himself be led back to the guest room that had temporarily become his. The woman still seemed completely unbothered by anything. Was this really how she was all the time? Boisterous and sunny all the time, spoiling everyone with food?

...Would it be weird to say that he sort of liked it?

The volume definitely wasn’t something he tended to enjoy, but both women were just so earnest in their demeanour. Venom knew firsthand all the methods to appear polite and disarming, but damn it if he could see Jale and Kittie as anything but a couple of quirky people that were utterly harmless...aside from the freakish strength. There were definitely worse places to be stuck-

-No, no! He couldn’t do this again! He wasn’t going to let himself lower his guard! He had to stay focused.

“Here we are, just lie down a while.”

Upon his second visit, Venom became aware of how soft the bed was, compared to the ones the Guild used. The leaders were given nicer accommodations, but operatives of his ranking all slept on cots, with a single thin blanket. Here, he was drowned in squishiness, even moreso as Kittie dragged a fluffy quilt over his body.

He caught her smiling at him again. “Just gimme a holler if you need anything, okay?”

“Mmhm.” He nodded slightly. Maybe he just needed some time to himself. 

It seemed good enough for his host, at least. Kittie gave a little nod of her own, turning and heading towards the door. She switched the light off, leaving only a bit of midday sunlight sneaking under the curtains to illuminate the room.

Venom was hoping that would have been the end of it. And yet, despite how tired he felt, and how willing he was to go back to sleep, he just couldn’t seem to. He waited, and waited, rolling from side to side, burying himself in the darkness of the blankets. Perhaps his mind had decided that he had slept enough already, despite his body’s complaints to the contrary.

As if things weren’t already stressing him out, when he turned over again, Venom felt something moving against his spine, squeezing between the bandages.

_”You seem restless, what is it?”_

The soft voice made his heart speed up, just from the sound. He opted to ignore it and her, burying his face in the pillow and willing himself to sleep.

A thin, winding tendril slid up past his cheek, pulling aside part of his bangs. A pair of glimmering stars sat opposite, expression unreadable.

_”Are you ill, master?”_

Venom gave a quiet groan, eventually settling on merely offering a glare back. “Go away.”

Beatrice pulled back slightly, but kept his hair pinned. _”What is wrong?”_

“Don’t think I’ve forgotten that easily.” He hissed, trying to keep quiet and avoid drawing attention. “Because of you, I almost _died_ , and now we’re stuck here!”

The Beast made a low, soft noise, moving to settle herself on the mattress in front of him. She looked abnormally small. _”I know. I don’t mean to be mean. I’m sorry.”_ She gave his cheek an apologetic nuzzle. _”I didn’t mean to. You hurt my feelings. I got scared. I promise it won’t happen again!”_

“Well, we’re still stuck, anyway.” He sighed in annoyance. “I get the feeling that these two won’t let me go, even if I try.”

At the mention of his hosts, he felt the parasite bristle slightly. “Something wrong?”

 _”I...don’t think I trust those two, dearest.”_ She replied. _”Something about them makes me uncomfortable.”_

In a weird way, that was a relief. “Yeah. I don’t know why, but I’m not sure if staying here is the safest option.”

_”I couldn’t agree more. There’s a window, think we should climb out through it and run?”_

Venom was quiet. “Admittedly, I don’t think they were entirely wrong. I am pretty tired. I can keep myself safe for now. If something goes wrong, I can run.”

 _”Huh?”_ Beatrice lifted up off of the mattress. _”But what do I do, then?”_

He wasn’t sure if he trusted her again, not enough to have her intervene. “I can handle this. Trust me.”

It was hard to tell, but she looked unconvinced. _“Venom. Are you sure you aren’t getting off-task again?”_

“I’m not. I promise.”

The stickiness slid back under the covers, retreating back to safety. _”If you say so.”_

He lay alone in silence for a bit, wondering why it now felt even harder for him to rest. He remained motionless, slowly watching the harsh yellow sunlight soften into dusky orange.

It seemed impolite to wander around someone’s house, and Venom still wasn’t sure if he trusted Jale and Kittie. But loathe to admit it, he was bored, and he wasn’t sure what to do with himself. Reluctantly, he got to his feet and padded out of the bedroom, wandering back down the hallway as quietly as possible. Maybe he could wear himself out with a walk.

All of the doors in the hallway were closed. He couldn’t tell if the owners had gone to bed already. Strangely, when he peeked out into the living room, it was entirely empty. Not even just absent of people, but all of the rabbits seemed to have vanished since the last time he’d been in the room. Assassin training was burned so deeply into his mind that it was instinct to keep his footsteps light, even with nobody to hear them, avoiding any creaks from the floorboards to remain undetected.

The front door was located easily, and it creaked open near-silently as Venom slipped his lithe body through it and stepped onto the doorstep. It was nothing more than a beaten dirt path, topped with a cutesy doormat with a picture of- what else?- a bunny.

He followed the dirt path a ways, watching it worm across the lawn before eventually settling at a sturdy wooden gate. It was clear that the fence wasn’t for decoration. It went up past his hips, high enough that no rabbit would be able to bound over it, and that no human would be able to step over it without great effort.

Venom let his hand linger on the gate for a moment, before turning and walking off into the grass. He spotted the rabbits wandering around the yard, apparently more interested in nibbling on the grass or sunning themselves in the evening light than paying any attention to him. That was fine. They had no reason to bother each other.

He circled the wide lawn a few times, soft grass brushing against his bare ankles. The far end of the fence filled his nose with the scent of strawberries and something else he couldn’t name. The fruit and vegetable patches looked well-cared for. When he felt his stomach growling, he turned away and started walking again.

As he did, he noticed a pitch-black rabbit looking at him curiously. Venom moved to talk around it, but the animal proceeded to trot along behind him, like it was enjoying a game. When he stopped walking, it bumped right into his legs. He would have assumed that the rabbit would be shocked and immediately dart off, but it opted to settle by his foot and start grooming itself.

What peculiar creatures. He had no idea how anything could be so laid-back and carefree. It was just astonishing. Hesitantly, he knelt down to get a better look.

“Bedtime, furballs, everyone get inside!”

The sudden shouting made him freeze. By the time he realized that he recognized it, Kittie was already halfway to him. “Heya, kiddo! Didn’t expect to see ya out here, everything okay?”

Venom had already jolted back up, limbs going stiff. His eyes darted around the lawn. He found himself leaning back against the fence, partly out of intimidation, ad partly so he could make a break for it if it was necessary.

“I-I didn’t know you were out here.”

The woman gave a loud, bright laugh, running a hand through her mud-colored curls. “Farm work never ends, sweetheart! I was just giving the bunnies dinner ‘n rounding em up for the night. I see you’re makin’ friends with Lacuna?”

Before he could think to say anything, Kittie scooped up the black rabbit and gave it a scritch between the ears. After that, she reached down, pulling the ring of a collar out from the animal’s thick fur, with ‘Lacuna’ punched into the little metal medallion.

“All of ‘em have got tags, if you don’t remember names. Hell, I still forget ‘em sometimes. Lacuna’s one of the younger guys, I wanna say almost two? Still a big baby, though, always following people. Y’seem to be a natural with these guys, they love ya! You ever work on a farm before?”

“N-no, I haven’t.” Venom wasn’t sure how to respond. Kittie and Jale both had an odd tone to the way they spoke, like they were talking to an old friend despite only just meeting him. He didn’t know how to respond to it.

“Huh. Guess you must be magic, then!” Kittie grinned, turning and starting to walk back towards the barn with Lacuna. “Venom the bunny whisperer! Maybe you rolled in alfalfa before coming here, haha!”

He briefly considered pushing himself over the fence and fleeing, now that he wasn’t being watched. After a moment, he decided to go after her. He was too curious.

Kittie threw the barn door back, revealing a long line of pens on either side. She set Lacuna down in one of them, and he happily bounded off to a particularly comfortable-looking pile of bedding to flop over on.

“Most of ‘em are trained, but a few need a bit of encouragement. Mind holding the big door while I open the hutches? They should come runnin’ right at’cha!”

It seemed like a reasonable enough request. Venom moved back to prop the door open with his body, staring out at the lawn while something creaked and rattled behind him. The hutches, he presumed, and perhaps some sort of food. He could only wonder just how much food they went through, considering how big the rabbits were, and how many they had.

He was sure that Kittie had been exaggerating at first. None of the bunnies seemed very interested at first, with maybe a couple glancing in his direction from the noise the door made. As soon as he heard the sound of a clanging bell, almost all of them perked up and started trotting over to the barn on their own.

There was something strangely intimidating about being surrounded by so many large creatures, even if they were only rabbits and didn’t even come up to his knees. Several stopped as they approached the building, not to change their mind and head back onto the grass, but to nuzzle against his legs. A few even tried a bit of climbing, sniffing the air as they propped themselves up on their back legs. Venom nudged them gently towards their destination, taking a moment to check their tags out of curiosity. Donna. Glover. Lane. Slade. They all went in without fuss, presumably finding places to get comfortable and settle down while Kittie filled their bowls.

He could see the appeal in raising these. They were calm and soft, and each rabbit was brimming with personality despite being nearly silent. Remarkably sociable, too. They mirrored their owners, in a way, taking to him like he was already a part of their family. It was oddly touching.

Venom moved to see how the bunnies were settling in. In his distraction, he almost tripped over a chubby rabbit underfoot. He bit down a curse, but confusion quickly overtook it. This rabbit seemed a bit different, more waddling awkwardly than plodding along like the others. Had he injured it by accident?

Feeling a sudden jolt of panic, he turned his head in search. “Um, Miss Kittie?”

“Yeah? Something wrong, Venom?” The woman appeared from the barn. “You sound worried.”

He pointed to the rabbit on the ground, who was more preoccupied with grooming itself than anything else. “That one, is it okay? It seems rather-”

“Ahh, so I see ya met Cherri.” Kittie unexpectedly broke out into a wry smile. She knelt down by the animal and began itching it behind the ears.

“She seemed to be moving oddly. I was wondering if she was injured?”

“Nah, nah, no worries!” The woman waved him down. “Only problem with Cherri is that she’s fat. Big ‘n fat ‘n fulla babies. Should be coming any day, too. You’re lucky! Maybe you’ll get to see ‘em before you head back out.”

“Oh.”

“No need to be so shy! Cherri’s a big softie. Likes getting pet even more than Astarte. Give her a few scritches and she’ll love you forever.”

Venom obliged, leaning down and stroking. The rabbit butted her head against his hand, and nuzzled his outstretched palm. He knew it was going to be soft to the touch, but he was not properly prepared for just how soft it was.

“Nice, huh?” Kittie was smiling at him. “You look ready to melt right where you are. Part ‘o the appeal, I figure. Don’t like talkin’ bad about Astarte, but Cherri’s got the best coat, I think.”

“Speaking of which…” He gave the yard a sweep. “Where is she? I don’t think I saw her come in with the rest.”

The woman gave a playful scoff. “Astarte? She’s a lil’ princess, thinks she’s too good to stay with everyone else. She’s got her own bed inside to sleep on. A blanket ‘n everything! Completely spoiled rotten. Didn’t know fame could go to her head like that.” Kittie shook her head. “She won best in show way back when at the county fair, been like this ever since!”

Venom found himself laughing at that. It sounded so absurd, but he knew that she was being completely honest. Based on what he’d seen of Astarte, he had no trouble believing it. 

“Ha! Finally got a real smile outta ya! That’s my favorite. Ah love makin’ smiles! But I dye grease.”

He paused. “Pardon? You what?”

“Er...dye grass? Dig-grass?”

“‘Digress?’”

“Yeah. That.” Kittie blushed, but still managing her own smile. “I ain’t all that smart, if ya haven’t noticed. Jale, though? She’s reeeal smart. Still dunno what made her wanna marry an idiot like me.” She leaned back against the doorframe, eyes twinkling. “Smart as a whip, ‘n the prettiest damn thing God put on earth. Golly…”

“Kittie?!”

She stood back up. “Speak o’ the devil. Everything alright, darlin’?”

“Ohhh. Oh thank goodness.” Jale ran out onto the lawn, letting out a sigh of relief when she saw Venom standing next to Kittie. “I had just gone to check and see if you were sleeping alright, and the bed was empty! I thought I was going to have a heart attack.”

“Everything’s alright. Venom was just helpin’ me put the bunnies to bed. He’s a real natural!”

“I’m sorry.” He said. “I couldn’t sleep. I thought a walk would help.”

“Just as long as I know that you’re safe.” Jale smiled at him, gently brushing his bangs behind his ear. “I think Astarte missed you too, she’s already climbed into your bed.”

“She’s already claimed ‘im!” Kittie guffawed. “Sorry, kiddo.”

“It’s fine. Um, is it alright if I try going back to bed?”

Jale nodded. “Of course. We should probably rest soon, too. Got to get up early for chores!”

After making sure Cherri had settled down and ensuring that all the latches were locked, the three of them retreated inside as the sun nearly set. Kittie gave Venom a pat on the head before he went back into the guest room. Astarte was still settled on his bed, looking almost indignant that she had gone ignored.

“We usually leave for the farmer’s market at around ten,” said Jale. “You’re free to come along if you’d like. If we’re gone when you wake up, feel free to help yourself to anything in the cupboards. Just go easy on your arm, alright?”

“Okay.”

“Goodnight, Venom. Sleep well.”

“Goodnight.” He replied, burrowing under blankets and petting the rabbit as they stepped out and closed the door quietly. Kittie turned to leave.

“...Kittie?”

“Yeah, hon?”

“About Venom…”

She sighed. “Yeah, I’ve been noticing, too. That what you mean?”

“He’s so quiet all the time…”

“Doesn’t like asking for nothing, either.”

“And those injuries. Where would something like that even come from?”

Kittie shook her head. “No surprise we found him in the woods. Prolly a runaway from Marseille or Nin.”

“Poor little thing.”

“Parents, you think?”

“Gotta be. He’s afraid of existing too loudly. That’s not something kids are born with.”

“Gosh…” They both looked at the closed door, like they expected something to be there. “What’re we gonna do with him?”


End file.
